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Description
We use the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury survey data set to perform spatially resolved measurements of star cluster formation efficiency ({Gamma}), the fraction of stellar mass formed in long-lived star clusters. We use robust star formation history and cluster parameter constraints, obtained through color-magnitude diagram analysis of resolved stellar populations, to study Andromeda's cluster and field populations over the last ~300Myr. We measure {Gamma} of 4%-8% for young, 10-100Myr-old populations in M31. We find that cluster formation efficiency varies systematically across the M31 disk, consistent with variations in mid-plane pressure. These {Gamma} measurements expand the range of well-studied galactic environments, providing precise constraints in an HI-dominated, low-intensity star formation environment. Spatially resolved results from M31 are broadly consistent with previous trends observed on galaxy-integrated scales, where {Gamma} increases with increasing star formation rate surface density ({Sigma}_SFR_). However, we can explain observed scatter in the relation and attain better agreement between observations and theoretical models if we account for environmental variations in gas depletion time ({tau}_dep_) when modeling {Gamma}, accounting for the qualitative shift in star formation behavior when transitioning from a H_2_-dominated to a HI-dominated interstellar medium. We also demonstrate that {Gamma} measurements in high {Sigma}_SFR_ starburst systems are well-explained by {tau}_dep_-dependent fiducial {Gamma} models.
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