Bayesian Inference for the White Dwarf Initial-Final Mass Relation

• Stars lose mass as they age, and understanding mass loss is important for understanding stellar evolution. •The initial-final mass relation (IFMR) is the relationship between a white dwarf’s initial mass on the main sequence and its final mass. •We have developed a new method for fitting the IFMR based on a Bayesian analysis of photometric observations, combining deterministic models of stellar evolution in an internally coherent way. No mass data are used. •Our method yields precise inferences (with uncertainties) for a parameterized linear IFMR. Our method can also return posterior distributions of white dwarf initial and final masses. Background: Color-Magnitude Diagrams •Observe stars ’ luminosities through different filters •For the star clusters we study, several parameters are common to all stars: •Chemical composition (metallicity) •Age •Distance •Absorption • Initial masses vary star to star •Color-magnitude diagrams show the temperature (horizontal axis) and brightness (vertical axis) of stars in different evolutionary states •For single-age clusters, these different evolutionary states are determined by stars ’ initial masses Fitting the IFMR 0.0 0.5 1.