The VMC survey -- XLVII. Turbulence-Controlled Hierarchical Star
  Formation in the Large Magellanic Cloud
  We perform a statistical clustering analysis of upper main-sequence stars in
the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) using data from the Visible and Infrared
Survey Telescope for Astronomy survey of the Magellanic Clouds. We map over
2500 young stellar structures at 15 significance levels across ~120 square
degrees centred on the LMC. The structures have sizes ranging from a few
parsecs to over 1 kpc. We find that the young structures follow power-law size
and mass distributions. From the perimeter-area relation, we derive a
perimeter-area dimension of 1.44+-0.20. From the mass-size relation and the
size distribution, we derive two-dimensional fractal dimensions of 1.50+-0.10
and 1.61+-0.20, respectively. We find that the surface density distribution is
well-represented by a lognormal distribution. We apply the Larson relation to
estimate the velocity dispersions and crossing times of these structures. Our
results indicate that the fractal nature of the young stellar structures has
been inherited from the gas clouds from which they form and that this
architecture is generated by supersonic turbulence. Our results also suggest
that star formation in the LMC is scale-free from 10 pc to 700 pc.
