Models of zero metallicity and extremely metal-poor stars show that they evolve differently to their more metal-rich counterparts. In particular they suffer violent proton-ingestion episodes (PIEs) that lead to extreme carbon enrichment at the surface. The fresh carbon has a fundamental effect on their further evolution, and can be transferred to binary companions, producing CEMP stars. As...
I will present a novel scenario for the formation of carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars. Carbon enhancement at low stellar metallicities is usually considered a consequence of faint or other exotic supernovae. A simple analytical estimate of cooling times in low-metallicity gas demonstrates a natural bias to the formation of CEMP stars as a consequence of inhomogeneous metal mixing:...
