2012/09/25 by N. Rowell, Nicholas Rowell, Rowell, Nicholas
Physics and Astronomy · #Astro and Planetary Science #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA) #FOS: Physical sciences #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph.GA
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1209.5593
6 pages; 3 figures. To appear in Proceedings of the 18th European White Dwarf Workshop, Krakow, Poland, 13-17 August 2012
arxiv created 2012/09/25 · openalex publication_date 2012/09/25 · arxiv updated 2012/09/26 · openalex created_date 2025/10/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
I present an algorithm for inverting the luminosity function for white dwarfs to obtain a maximum likelihood estimate of the star formation rate of the host stellar population. The algorithm is of the general class of Expectation Maximization, and involves iteratively improving an initial guess of the star formation rate. Tests show that the inversion results are quite sensitive to the assumed metallicity and initial mass function, but relatively insensitive to the initial-final mass relation and ratio of H/He atmosphere white dwarfs. Application to two independent determinations of the Solar neighbourhood white dwarf luminosity function gives similar results: the star formation rate is characterised by an early burst, and more recent peak at 2-3 Gyr in the past.