Princeton University Thunch Talk

The cycle of gas in and around galaxies plays a fundamental role in galaxy formation. Recent hydrodynamical simulations have managed to reach (sub-)parsec-scale resolutions to follow the small-scale physics in the interstellar medium (ISM). As our knowledge of the gas cycle comes from multi-wavelength observations, detailed modeling of the ISM chemistry is of fundamental importance. However, interstellar dust, the major catalyst of ISM chemistry, is often regarded as a non-evolving species. In this talk, I will present our recent progress on resolved hydrodynamical simulations of low-metallicity dwarf galaxies coupled with chemistry and dust evolution. Our resolution (1 M_sun per gas particle, spatial resolution ~0.2 pc) allows us to resolve not only the individual supernova blastwaves but also the detailed structure of the star-forming clouds. I will demonstrate how dust evolution helps explain the observed CO luminosity and why the observationally derived dust-to-gas ratio might have been underestimated at low metallicity. Finally, I will also discuss dust-enriched galactic outflows as a possible origin of the intergalactic dust.