The metal content of the hot atmospheres of galaxy groups
F. Gastaldello, A. Simionescu, François Mernier, Veronica Biffi, M. Gaspari, Kosuke Sato, Kyoko Matsushita
Abstract
The X-ray emitting intragroup medium (IGrM) reveals emission lines typical of <br> many elements synthesized by stars and supernovae. Because their gravitational <br> potentials are shallower than those of rich galaxy clusters, groups are ideal <br> targets for studying, through X-ray observations, feedback effects, which <br> leave important marks on their gas and metal contents. Here, we review the <br> history and present status of the chemical abundances in the IGrM probed <br> by X-ray spectroscopy, with emphasis on the constraints on the abundance <br> pattern at the group mass scale and the insight it provides to the history <br> of chemical enrichment. We will review on the other hand the limitations of our current <br> knowledge, in particular due to uncertainties in the modeling of the Fe-L <br> shell by plasma codes, and coverage of the volume beyond the central region. <br> I will also touch upon the progress made by both cosmological hydrodynamical <br> simulations and high-resolution 3D simulations to reproduce the radial <br> distribution of metals in the IGrM, the dependence on system mass and <br> the role of AGN and SN feedback in producing the observed phenomenology.