GA-NIFS view of LAP1: Assembly of Pop~III stellar clusters during EoR
Abstract
Lensed and Pristine 1 (LAP1) is one of the most promising candidates for the detection of so-called Pop~III stars at z∼6.6. In this work, we present new high-spectral-resolution (R ∼ 2700) \jwst NIRSpec-IFS observations of the system along with a detailed re-analysis of all archival \jwst and VLT/MUSE data. We confirm the very low metallicity of the system, with 12+log(O/H)=6.5−−6.8 (1--2\% Z⊙), and its low stellar mass, with M*= 103−−4 \Msun, based on the non-detection in \jwst/NIRCam filter stacks and the \Hbeta luminosity. The high-resolution IFS data allow us to constrain the upper limits on the dynamical masses (log10(M*/M⊙)) of the A and B components to <6.6−−7.6 and <5.6−−6.6, respectively. Based on the metallicity and the high equivalent width of \Halpha (EW >1200\,Å), we estimate the possible range of the LAP1 stellar population ages to be 2−−5~Myr, consistent with the first burst of star formation in a pristine environment. Based on the size (<10~pc) and mass of the system, we discuss the nature of LAP1 as representing the formation of the first stellar clusters in a larger undetected galaxy, similar to other low-metallicity Pop~III candidates in the literature.
Related
- Disentangling the assembly of the central and diffuse stellar components in galaxy clusters through dynamical friction and tidal stripping
- Disentangling the assembly of the central and diffuse stellar components in galaxy clusters through dynamical friction and tidal stripping
- Before fragmentation: From uniform clouds to stellar clusters
- Cosmic Ray Diffusion and the Origin of Very High Energy Gamma-Ray Emission in Young Massive Stellar Clusters
- SHARP(ening the) view of unresolved globular clusters in ultra diffuse galaxies
BibTeX
@misc{scholtz2026ganifs,
title = {{GA-NIFS view of LAP1: Assembly of Pop~III stellar clusters during EoR}},
author = {J. Scholtz and R. Maiolino and S. Carniani and E. Vanzella and R. J. Terlevich and H. Übler and M. Perna and S. Arribas and E. Bertola and P. Bergamini and T. Böker and A. Bolamperti and A. Bunker and S. Charlot and M. Curti and F. D'Eugenio and C. Grillo and L. R. Ivey and X. Ji and G. C. Jones and M. Meneghetti and M. M. Messa and R. Pascalau and B. Rodríguez Del Pino and P. Rosati and E. Rusta and S. Salvadori and E. Terlevich and G. Venturi and S. Zamora and A. Zanella},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.35945},
eprint = {2609.35945},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.35945},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - GA-NIFS view of LAP1: Assembly of Pop~III stellar clusters during EoR
AU - J. Scholtz
AU - R. Maiolino
AU - S. Carniani
AU - E. Vanzella
AU - R. J. Terlevich
AU - H. Übler
AU - M. Perna
AU - S. Arribas
AU - E. Bertola
AU - P. Bergamini
AU - T. Böker
AU - A. Bolamperti
AU - A. Bunker
AU - S. Charlot
AU - M. Curti
AU - F. D'Eugenio
AU - C. Grillo
AU - L. R. Ivey
AU - X. Ji
AU - G. C. Jones
AU - M. Meneghetti
AU - M. M. Messa
AU - R. Pascalau
AU - B. Rodríguez Del Pino
AU - P. Rosati
AU - E. Rusta
AU - S. Salvadori
AU - E. Terlevich
AU - G. Venturi
AU - S. Zamora
AU - A. Zanella
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/28
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.35945
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.35945
AB - Lensed and Pristine 1 (LAP1) is one of the most promising candidates for the detection of so-called Pop~III stars at z∼6.6. In this work, we present new high-spectral-resolution (R ∼ 2700) \jwst NIRSpec-IFS observations of the system along with a detailed re-analysis of all archival \jwst and VLT/MUSE data. We confirm the very low metallicity of the system, with 12+log(O/H)=6.5−−6.8 (1--2\% Z_⊙), and its low stellar mass, with M_*= 10^3−−4 \Msun, based on the non-detection in \jwst/NIRCam filter stacks and the \Hbeta luminosity. The high-resolution IFS data allow us to constrain the upper limits on the dynamical masses (log_10(M_*/M_⊙)) of the A and B components to <6.6−−7.6 and <5.6−−6.6, respectively. Based on the metallicity and the high equivalent width of \Halpha (EW >1200\,Å), we estimate the possible range of the LAP1 stellar population ages to be 2−−5~Myr, consistent with the first burst of star formation in a pristine environment. Based on the size (<10~pc) and mass of the system, we discuss the nature of LAP1 as representing the formation of the first stellar clusters in a larger undetected galaxy, similar to other low-metallicity Pop~III candidates in the literature.
ER -