The structure of disks around intermediate-mass young stars from mid-infrared interferometry. Evidence for a population of group II disks with gaps

The disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars are commonly divided into group I and group II based on their far-infrared spectral energy distribution, and the common interpretation for that is flared and flat disks. Recent observations suggest that many flaring disks have gaps, whereas flat disks are thought to be gapless. The different groups of objects can be expected to have different structural signatures in high-angular-resolution data. Over the past 10 years, the MIDI instrument on the Very Large Telescope Interferometer has collected observations of several tens of protoplanetary disks. We model the large set of observations with simple geometric models. A population of radiative-transfer models is synthesized for interpreting the mid-infrared signatures. Objects with similar luminosities show very different disk sizes in the mid-infrared. Restricting to the young objects of intermediate mass, we confirm that most group I disks are in agreement with being transitional. We find that several group II objects have mid-infrared sizes and colors overlapping with sources classified as group I, transition disks. This suggests that these sources have gaps, which has been demonstrated for a subset of them. This may point to an intermediate population between gapless and transition disks. Flat disks with gaps are most likely descendants of flat disks without gaps. Gaps, potentially related to the formation of massive bodies, may therefore even develop in disks in a far stage of grain growth and settling. The evolutionary implications of this new population could be twofold. Either gapped flat disks form a separate population of evolved disks, or some of them may further evolve into flaring disks with large gaps. The latter transformation may be governed by the interaction with a massive planet, carving a large gap and dynamically exciting the grain population in the disk.Comment: 24 pages, 11 figures, A&A in pres

Evidence for grain growth in T Tauri disks

In this article we present the results from mid-infrared spectroscopy of a sample of 14 T Tauri stars with silicate emission. The qualitative analysis of the spectra reveals a correlation between the strength of the silicate feature and its shape similar to the one which was found recently for the more massive Herbig Ae/Be stars by van Boekel et al. (2003). The comparison with theoretical spectra of amorphous olivine with different grain sizes suggests that this correlation is indicating grain growth in the disks of T Tauri stars. Similar mechanisms of grain processing appear to be effective in both groups of young stars.Comment: 4 pages A&A lette

Mid-infrared interferometry of massive young stellar objects. I. VLTI and Subaru observations of the enigmatic object M8E-IR

[abridged] Our knowledge of the inner structure of embedded massive young stellar objects is still quite limited. We attempt here to overcome the spatial resolution limitations of conventional thermal infrared imaging. We employed mid-infrared interferometry using the MIDI instrument on the ESO/VLTI facility to investigate M8E-IR, a well-known massive young stellar object suspected of containing a circumstellar disk. Spectrally dispersed visibilities in the 8-13 micron range were obtained at seven interferometric baselines. We resolve the mid-infrared emission of M8E-IR and find typical sizes of the emission regions of the order of 30 milli-arcseconds (~45 AU). Radiative transfer simulations have been performed to interpret the data. The fitting of the spectral energy distribution, in combination with the measured visibilities, does not provide evidence for an extended circumstellar disk with sizes > 100 AU but requires the presence of an extended envelope. The data are not able to constrain the presence of a small-scale disk in addition to an envelope. In either case, the interferometry measurements indicate the existence of a strongly bloated, relatively cool central object, possibly tracing the recent accretion history of M8E-IR. In addition, we present 24.5 micron images that clearly distinguish between M8E-IR and the neighbouring ultracompact HII region and which show the cometary-shaped infrared morphology of the latter source. Our results show that IR interferometry, combined with radiative transfer modelling, can be a viable tool to reveal crucial structure information on embedded massive young stellar objects and to resolve ambiguities arising from fitting the SED.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in A&A, new version after language editing, one important reference added, conclusions unchange

Thermochemical modelling of brown dwarf discs

RCH acknowledges funding by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF): project number P24790.The physical properties of brown dwarf discs, in terms of their shapes and sizes, are still largely unexplored by observations. ALMA has by far the best capabilities to observe these discs in sub-mm CO lines and dust continuum, while also spatially resolving some discs. To what extent brown dwarf discs are similar to scaled-down T Tauri discs is currently unknown, and this work is a step towards establishing a relationship through the eventual modelling of future observations. We use observations of the brown dwarf disc ρ Oph 102 to infer a fiducial model around which we build a small grid of brown dwarf disc models, in order to model the CO, HCN, and HCO+ line fluxes and the chemistry which drives their abundances. These are the first brown dwarf models to be published which relate detailed, 2D radiation thermochemical disc models to observational data. We predict that moderately extended ALMA antenna configurations will spatially resolve CO line emission around brown dwarf discs, and that HCN and HCO+ will be detectable in integrated flux, following our conclusion that the flux ratios of these molecules to CO emission are comparable to that of T Tauri discs. These molecules have not yet been observed in sub-mm wavelengths in a brown dwarf disc, yet they are crucial tracers of the warm surface-layer gas and of ionization in the outer parts of the disc. We present the prediction that if the physical and chemical processes in brown dwarf discs are similar to those that occur in T Tauri discs-as our models suggest-then the same diagnostics that are used for T Tauri discs can be used for brown dwarf discs (such as HCN and HCO+ lines that have not yet been observed in the sub-mm), and that these lines should be observable with ALMA. Through future observations, either confirmation (or refutation) of these ideas about brown dwarf disc chemistry will have strong implications for our understanding of disc chemistry, structure, and subsequent planet formation in brown dwarf discs.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Eta Car through the eyes of interferometers

The core of the nebula surrounding Eta Carinae has recently been observed with VLT/NACO, VLTI/VINCI, VLTI/MIDI and VLTI/AMBER in order to spatially and spectrally constrain the warm dusty environment and the central object. Narrow-band images at 3.74 and 4.05 micron reveal the structured butterfly-shaped dusty environment close to the central star with an unprecedented spatial resolution of about 60 mas. VINCI has resolved the present-day stellar wind of Eta Carinae on a scale of several stellar radii owing to the spatial resolution of the order of 5 mas (11 AU). The VINCI observations show that the object is elongated with a de-projected axis ratio of approximately 1.5. Moreover the major axis is aligned with that of the large bipolar nebula that was ejected in the 19th century. Fringes have also been obtained in the Mid-IR with MIDI using baselines of 75m. A peak of correlated flux of 100 Jy is detected 0.3" south-east from the photocenter of the nebula at 8.7 micron is detected. This correlated flux is partly attributed to the central object but it is worth noting that at these wavelengths, virtually all the 0.5" x 0.5" central area can generate detectable fringes witnessing the large clumping of the dusty ejecta. These observations provide an upper limit for the SED of the central source from 3.8 to 13.5 micron and constrain some parameters of the stellar wind which can be compared to Hillier's model. Lastly, we present the great potential of the AMBER instrument to study the numerous near-IR emissive lines from the star and its close vicinity. In particular, we discuss its ability to detect and follow the faint companion.Comment: 12 pages, published in proceedings of the ESO-EII Workshop "The power of optical / IR interferometry

Interpreting high spatial resolution line observations of planet-forming disks with gaps and rings : the case of HD 163296

Funding: C. R., G. M.-A., and C. G. acknowledge funding from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) TOP-1 grant as part of the research programme “Herbig Ae/Be stars, Rosetta stones for understanding the formation of planetary systems”, project number 614.001.552.Context. Spatially resolved continuum observations of planet-forming disks show prominent ring and gap structures in their dust distribution. However, the picture from gas observations is much less clear and constraints on the radial gas density structure (i.e. gas gaps) remain rare and uncertain. Aims. We want to investigate the importance of thermo-chemical processes for the interpretation of high-spatial-resolution gas observations of planet-forming disks and their impact on the derived gas properties. Methods. We applied the radiation thermo-chemical disk code PRODIMO (PROtoplanetary DIsk MOdel) to model the dust and gas disk of HD 163296 self-consistently, using the DSHARP (Disk Substructure at High Angular Resolution) gas and dust observations. With this model we investigated the impact of dust gaps and gas gaps on the observables and the derived gas properties, considering chemistry, and heating and cooling processes. Results. We find distinct peaks in the radial line intensity profiles of the CO line data of HD 163296 at the location of the dust gaps. Our model indicates that those peaks are not only a consequence of a gas temperature increase within the gaps but are mainly caused by the absorption of line emission from the back side of the disk by the dust rings. For two of the three prominent dust gaps in HD 163296, we find that thermo-chemical effects are negligible for deriving density gradients via measurements of the rotation velocity. However, for the gap with the highest dust depletion, the temperature gradient can be dominant and needs to be considered to derive accurate gas density profiles. Conclusions. Self-consistent gas and dust thermo-chemical modelling in combination with high-quality observations of multiple molecules are necessary to accurately derive gas gap depths and shapes. This is crucial to determine the origin of gaps and rings in planet-forming disks and to improve the mass estimates of forming planets if they are the cause of the gap.PostprintPeer reviewe

Probing the Early Evolution of Young High-Mass Stars

Near-infrared imaging surveys of high-mass star-forming regions reveal an amazingly complex interplay between star formation and the environment (Churchwell et al. 2006; Alvarez et al. 2004). By means of near-IR spectroscopy the embedded massive young stars can be characterized and placed in the context of their birth site. However, so far spectroscopic surveys have been hopelessly incomplete, hampering any systematic study of these very young massive stars. New integral field instrumentation available at ESO has opened the possibility to take a huge step forward by obtaining a full spectral inventory of the youngest massive stellar populations in star-forming regions currently accessible. Simultaneously, the analysis of the extended emission allows the characterization of the environmental conditions. The Formation and Early Evolution of Massive Stars (FEMS) collaboration aims at setting up a large observing campaign to obtain a full census of the stellar content, ionized material, outflows and PDR's over a sample of regions that covers a large parameter space. Complementary radio, mm and infrared observations will be used for the characterization of the deeply embedded population. For the first eight regions we have obtained 40 hours of SINFONI observations. In this contribution, we present the first results on three regions that illustrate the potential of this strategy.Comment: To appear in ASP Conf. Proceedings of "Massive Star Formation: Observations confront Theory", H. Beuther et al. (eds.), held in Heidelberg, September 200

High angular resolution N-band observation of the silicate carbon star IRAS08002-3803 with the VLTI/MIDI instrument

We present the results of N-band spectro-interferometric observations of the silicate carbon star IRAS08002-3803 with the MID-infrared Interferometric instrument (MIDI) at the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) of the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The observations were carried out using two unit telescopes (UT2 and UT3) with projected baseline lengths ranging from 39 to 47 m. Our observations of IRAS08002-3803 have spatially resolved the dusty environment of a silicate carbon star for the first time and revealed an unexpected wavelength dependence of the angular size in the N band: the uniform-disk diameter is found to be constant and ~36 mas (72 Rstar) between 8 and 10 micron, while it steeply increases longward of 10 micron to reach ~53 mas (106 Rstar) at 13 micron. Model calculations with our Monte Carlo radiative transfer code show that neither spherical shell models nor axisymmetric disk models consisting of silicate grains alone can simultaneously explain the observed wavelength dependence of the visibility and the spectral energy distribution (SED). We propose that the circumstellar environment of IRAS08002-3803 may consist of two grain species coexisting in the disk: silicate and a second grain species, for which we consider amorphous carbon, large silicate grains, and metallic iron grains. Comparison of the observed visibilities and SED with our models shows that such disk models can fairly -- though not entirely satisfactorily -- reproduce the observed SED and N-band visibilities. Our MIDI observations and the radiative transfer calculations lend support to the picture where oxygen-rich material around IRAS08002-3803 is stored in a circumbinary disk surrounding the carbon-rich primary star and its putative low-luminosity companion.Comment: 15 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in A&