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My research centers on understanding the origin of the initial mass function (IMF), which is the mass distribution of stars in a young cluster. I perform a comprehensive parameter study of the IMF using magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) simulations of star cluster formation. The simulations incorporate gravity, turbulence, magnetic fields, protostellar heating, and mechanical feedback via jets and outflows. With my work, I conclusively demonstrate that integrating all these mechanisms simultaneously in simulations is crucial since each of them has an individual effect on the characteristics of the IMF. I show that the inclusion of protostellar outflows in simulations increases the number of stars formed, while lowering the median mass and star formation rate by a factor of ~ 2. Furthermore, I observe that the mode of turbulence driving has a key part in shaping the form of the IMF, where a purely compressive turbulence driving (curl-free) produces a higher fraction of low mass stars as compared to a purely solenoidal driving (divergence-free). My work also reveals that the IMF exhibits a weak dependence on the cloud virial parameter, the ratio of the kinetic energy to potential energy, which is another important cloud property related to turbulence. I propose that the scatter in the IMF characteristics observed in the Milky Way is a consequence of the variations in the environmental conditions like the turbulence driving and the virial parameter. The large suite of simulations I conducted also provided substantial data to analyse various binary properties of stars with robust statistical significance. I find that the turbulence properties such as the mode of driving have a considerable impact on the stellar multiplicity and orbital eccentricity. |
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