xGASS: the connection between angular momentum, mass, and atomic gas fraction in nearby galaxies

Abstract

ABSTRACT We use a sample of 559 disc galaxies extracted from the eXtended GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey to study the connection between baryonic angular momentum, mass, and atomic gas fraction in the local Universe. Baryonic angular momenta are determined by combining H i and H2 integrated profiles with 2D stellar mass surface density profiles. In line with previous work, we confirm that specific angular momentum and atomic gas fraction are tightly correlated, but we find a larger scatter than previously observed. This is most likely due to the wider range of galaxy properties covered by our sample. We compare our findings with the predictions of the analytical stability model developed by Obreschkow et al. and find that, while the model provides a very good first-order approximation for the connection between baryonic angular momentum, mass, and gas fraction, it does not fully match our data. Specifically, we find that at fixed baryonic mass, the dependence of specific angular momentum on gas fraction is significantly weaker, and at fixed gas fraction, the slope of the angular momentum versus mass relation is shallower than what was predicted by the model. The reasons behind this tension remain unclear, but we speculate that multiple factors may simultaneously play a role, all related to the fact that the model is not able to encapsulate the full diversity of galaxy properties in our sample.