Inception of the Chemical Elements

研究宇宙历史上星系的化学演化是我们理解控制星系形成的物理过程的核心。在接下来的几年里，詹姆斯·韦伯太空望远镜（JWST）和多目标近红外光谱仪（MOONS）等变革性仪器有望彻底改变这一领域。基于我最近在VANDELS调查中成功地研究了2.5 < z < 5.0的星系的恒星金属丰度，我建议建立一个研究团队，以充分利用下一代仪器的潜力。该提案的三个主要科学目标可以概括如下：(i)建立对z = 3.5的星系恒星金属丰度的完整理解；（ii）利用JWST的转换能力，将星系金属丰度的研究扩展到红移范围4 < z < 10；（iii）利用MOONS首次研究1 < z < 3波段星系金属丰度对环境的依赖性。这些目标将通过利用我最近的出版历史，以及我在VANDELS调查、三个大型JWST Cycle 1项目和MOONS GTO调查MOONRISE中的领导作用而成为可能。除了这些核心观测目标之外，我的团队还将开发新的最先进的方法，用于与宇宙模拟进行精确比较，超越简单的参数比较，构建完全真实的模拟观测。总之，这项提议的目的是建立一个具有跨学科技能的研究团队，以充分利用即将到来的变革性数据集，并通过与宇宙模拟进行详细比较，最大限度地发挥其潜力。这个项目将大大提高我们对宇宙前6 Gyr宇宙化学演化的理解-绘制元素周期表的天体物理起源。

Studying the chemical evolution of galaxies across the history of the Universe is central to our efforts to understand the physical processes governing galaxy formation. Over the coming years, transformative instruments such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Multi-Object Near-infrared Spectrograph (MOONS) promise to revolutionise the field. Building on my recent success investigating the stellarmetallicities of galaxies at 2.5 < z < 5.0 from the VANDELS survey, I propose to construct a research team that will fully exploit the potential of this next generation of instruments. The three primary science goals of the proposal can be summarized as follows: (i) to establish a complete understanding of galaxy stellar metallicities at z = 3.5; (ii) to extend the study of galaxy metallicities into the redshift range 4 < z < 10 by exploiting the transformative capabilities of JWST; and (iii) to perform the first investigations of the environment dependence on galaxy stellar metallicities at 1 < z < 3 with MOONS. These goals will be made possible by leveraging my recent publication history, as well as my leading roles within the VANDELS survey, three large JWST Cycle 1 programs, and the MOONS GTO survey MOONRISE. In addition to these core observational goals, my team will also develop novel state-of-the-art methods for performing accurate comparisons with cosmological simulations, moving beyond simple parameter comparisons and constructing fully realistic mock observations. In summary, the aim of this proposal is to build a research team with the interdisciplinary skills necessary to fully exploit upcoming transformative datasets and maximise their potential by performing detailed comparisons with cosmological simulations. This project will significantly enhance our understanding of the chemical evolution of the Universe over the first 6 Gyr of cosmic time - charting the astrophysical origin of the periodic table of elements.