Abstract
We investigate the problem of the origin of the Initial Mass Function for field stars. The IMF, computed following the nonlinear approach by Ferrini, Marchesoni and Vulpiani (1983), has been extended to take into account the simultaneous presence of several instability criteria, applied to the fragmentation of molecular clouds. The two basic properties of the observed IMF are reproduced: the region of the peak and the power law that describes the behaviour of the IMF for masses larger than the characteristic mass. Small scale features are found in some of the computed IMFs, in the form of small departures from a smooth, monotonic behaviour.
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Ferrini, F., Palla, F., Penco, U. (1990). Fragmentation theories and the IMF. In: Capuzzo-Dolcetta, R., Chiosi, C., di Fazio, A. (eds) Physical Processes in Fragmentation and Star Formation. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 162. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0605-1_31
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0605-1_31
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