Local stellar kinematics from RAVE data - II. Radial metallicity gradient

Abstract

We investigate radial metallicity gradients for a sample of dwarf stars from the RAdial Velocity Experiment (RAVE) Data Release 3 (DR3). We select a total of approximately 17 000 F-type and G-type dwarfs, using a selection of colour, log g and uncertainty in the derived space motion, and calculate for each star a probabilistic (kinematic) population assignment to a thick or thin disc using space motion and additionally another (dynamical) assignment using stellar vertical orbital eccentricity. We additionally subsample by colour, to provide samples biased toward young thin-disc and older thin-disc stars. We derive a metallicity gradient as a function of Galactocentric radial distance, i.e. d[M/H]/dRm=-0.051 +/- 0.005 dex kpc-1, for the youngest sample, F-type stars with vertical orbital eccentricities e(v) <= 0.04. Samples biased toward older thin-disc stars show systematically shallower abundance gradients.