The formation of spiral arms and rings in barred galaxies

Abstract

We propose a theory to explain the formation of both spirals and rings in barred galaxies using a common dynamical framework. It is based on the orbital motion driven by the unstable equilibrium points of the rotating bar potential. Thus, spirals, rings and pseudo-rings are related to the invariant manifolds associated to the periodic orbits around these equilibrium points. We examine the parameter space of three barred galaxy models and discuss the formation of the different morphological structures according to the properties of the bar model. We also study the influence of the shape of the rotation curve in the outer parts, by making families of models with rising, flat or falling rotation curves in the outer parts. The differences between spiral and ringed structures arise from differences in the dynamical parameters of the host galaxies.