468 research outputs found
Mantle formation, coagulation and the origin of cloud/core-shine: II. Comparison with observations
Many dense interstellar clouds are observable in emission in the near-IR,
commonly referred to as "Cloudshine", and in the mid-IR, the so-called
"Coreshine". These C-shine observations have usually been explained with grain
growth but no model has yet been able to self-consistently explain the dust
spectral energy distribution from the near-IR to the submm. We want to
demonstrate the ability of our new core/mantle evolutionary dust model THEMIS
(The Heterogeneous dust Evolution Model at the IaS), which has been shown to be
valid in the far-IR and submm, to reproduce the C-shine observations. Our
starting point is a physically motivated core/mantle dust model. It consists of
3 dust populations: small aromatic-rich carbon grains; bigger core/mantle
grains with mantles of aromatic-rich carbon and cores either made of amorphous
aliphatic-rich carbon or amorphous silicate. We assume an evolutionary path
where these grains, when entering denser regions, may first form a second
aliphatic-rich carbon mantle (coagulation of small grains, accretion of carbon
from the gas phase), second coagulate together to form large aggregates, and
third accrete gas phase molecules coating them with an ice mantle. To compute
the corresponding dust emission and scattering, we use a 3D Monte-Carlo
radiative transfer code. We show that our global evolutionary dust modelling
approach THEMIS allows us to reproduce C-shine observations towards dense
starless clouds. Dust scattering and emission is most sensitive to the cloud
central density and to the steepness of the cloud density profile. Varying
these two parameters leads to changes, which are stronger in the near-IR, in
both the C-shine intensity and profile. With a combination of aliphatic-rich
mantle formation and low-level coagulation into aggregates, we can
self-consistently explain the observed C-shine and far-IR/submm emission
towards dense starless clouds.Comment: Paper accepted for publication in A&A with companion paper "Mantle
formation, coagulation and the origin of cloud/core-shine: I. Dust scattering
and absorption in the IR", A.P Jones, M. Koehler, N. Ysard, E. Dartois, M.
Godard, L. Gavila
Results from a VLT-ISAAC survey of ices and gas around young stellar objects
General results from a 3-5 micron spectroscopic survey of nearby low-mass
young stellar objects are presented. L and M-band spectra have been obtained of
\~50 low mass embedded young stars using the ISAAC spectrometer mounted on
UT1-Antu at Paranal Observatory. For the first time, a consistent census of the
CO, H2O ices and the minor ice species CH3OH and OCN- and warm CO gas present
around young stars is obtained, using large number statistics and resolving
powers of up to R=10000. The molecular structure of circumstellar CO ices, the
depletion of gaseous CO onto grains in protoplanetary disks, the presence of
hot gas in the inner parts of circumstellar disks and in outflows and infalls
are studied. Furthermore, the importance of scattering effects for the
interpretation of the spectra have been addressed.Comment: To appear in the proceedings of the conference "Chemistry as a
Diagnostic of Star Formation", University of Waterloo, Canada, 21-23 August
200
Detection of abundant solid methanol toward young low mass stars
We present detections of the absorption band at 3.53 micron due to solid
methanol toward three low-mass young stellar objects located in the Serpens and
Chameleon molecular cloud complexes. The sources were observed as part of a
large spectroscopic survey of ~40 protostars. This is the first detection of
solid methanol in the vicinity of low mass (M <1 Msol) young stars and shows
that the formation of methanol does not depend on the proximity of massive
young stars. The abundances of solid methanol compared to water ice for the
three sources are in the range 15-25% which is comparable to those for the most
methanol-rich massive sources known. The presence of abundant methanol in the
circumstellar environment of some low mass young stars has important
consequences for the formation scenarios of methanol and more complex organic
species near young solar-type stars.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A letter
Bright CO ro-vibrational emission lines in the class I source GSS 30 IRS1: Probing the inner disk of a young embedded star
We present a 4.5-4.85 micron R=5000 spectrum of the low mass class I young
stellar object GSS 30 IRS1 (L=25L_sun) in the rho Ophiuchus core, observed with
the infrared spectrometer (ISAAC) on the Very Large Telescope (VLT-UT1). Strong
line emission from the ro-vibrational transitions of 12CO and 13CO is detected.
In total more than 40 distinct lines are seen in the covered region. The line
emission is spatially extended and detected up to 2" = 320 AU from the central
source but is spectrally unresolved (Delta v < 30 km/s). This is the first time
strong emission in the fundamental ro-vibrational band from CO has been
observed from an embedded young stellar object. The line fluxes were modeled
using a 1-dimensional full radiative transfer code, which shows that the
emission is fully consistent with a gas in LTE at a single well constrained
temperature (T=515+/-5 K). Furthermore, the ratios between lines from the two
detected isotopic species of CO show that the 12CO lines must be optically
thick. However, this is inconsistent with the observed spatial extent of the
emission, since this implies such low CO column densities that the lines are
optically thin. A likely solution to the discrepancy is that the lines are
emitted by a smaller more dense region and then scattered in the bipolar cavity
present around the central star. This gives a rough estimate of the total
molecular gas mass of 1-100 M_earth and a physical extent of ~20-100 AU. We
propose that the most likely origin of the line emission is post-shocked gas in
a dense dissociative accretion shock from the inner 10-50 AU of a circumstellar
disk. The presence of a shock capable of dissociating molecules in the disk
will have implications for the chemical evolution of disks around young low
mass stars.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures, accepted by A&
Mantle formation, coagulation and the origin of cloud/core shine: I. Modelling dust scattering and absorption in the infra-red
Context. The observed cloudshine and coreshine (C-shine) have been explained
in terms of grain growth leading to enhanced scatter- ing from clouds in the J,
H and K photometric bands and the Spitzer IRAC 3.6 and 4.5 {\mu}m bands. Aims.
Using our global dust modelling approach THEMIS (The Heterogeneous dust
Evolution Model at the IaS) we explore the effects of dust evolution in dense
clouds, through aliphatic-rich carbonaceous mantle formation and grain-grain
coagulation. Methods. We model the effects of wide band gap a-C:H mantle
formation and the low-level aggregation of diffuse interstellar medium dust in
the moderately-extinguished outer regions of molecular clouds. Results. The
formation of wide band gap a-C:H mantles on amorphous silicate and amorphous
carbon (a-C) grains leads to a decrease in their absorption cross-sections but
no change in their scattering cross-sections at near-IR wavelengths, resulting
in higher albedos. Conclusions. The evolution of dust, with increasing density
and extinction in the diffuse to dense molecular cloud transition, through
mantle formation and grain aggregation, appears to be a likely explanation for
the observed C-shine.Comment: 12 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in A&A along with the
companion paper entitled, Mantle formation, coagulation and the origin of
cloud/core shine: II Comparison with observations, by Ysard et al. (also
accepted for publication in A&A
Detection of abundant solid CO in the disk around CRBR 2422.8-3423
We present direct evidence for CO freeze-out in a circumstellar disk around the edge-on class I object CRBR 2422.8-3423, observed in the M band with VLT-ISAAC at a resolving power R~10,000. The spectrum shows strong solid CO absorption, with a lower limit on the column density of 2.2E18 cm-2. The solid CO column is the highest observed so far, including high-mass protostars and background field stars. Absorption by foreground cloud material likely accounts for less than 10% percent of the total solid CO, based on the weakness of solid CO absorption toward nearby sources and the absence of gaseous C18O J=2-1 emission 30'' south. Gas-phase ro-vibrational CO absorption lines are also detected with a mean temperature of 50 +/-10 K. The average gas/solid CO ratio is ~1 along the line of sight. For an estimated inclination of 20 +/- 5 degree, the solid CO absorption originates mostly in the cold, shielded outer part of the flaring disk, consistent with the predominance of apolar solid CO in the spectrum and the non-detection of solid OCN-, a thermal/ultraviolet processing of the ice mantle. The gaseous CO comes from the warm upper layers closer to the star
Ices in Star-Forming Regions: First Results from VLT-ISAAC
The first results from a VLT-ISAAC program on L- and M-band infrared
spectroscopy of deeply-embedded young stellar objects are presented. The advent
of 8-m class telescopes allows high S/N spectra of low-luminosity sources to be
obtained. In our first observing run, low- and medium-resolution spectra have
been measured toward a dozen objects, mostly in the Vela and Chamaeleon
molecular clouds. The spectra show strong absorption of H2O and CO ice, as well
as weak features at `3.47' and 4.62 mu. No significant solid CH3OH feature at
3.54 mu is found, indicating that the CH3OH/H2O ice abundance is lower than
toward some massive protostars. Various evolutionary diagnostics are
investigated for a set of sources in Vela.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, to appear in The Origins of Stars and Planets:
the VLT View, eds. J. Alves, M. McCaughrean (Springer Verlag
Carbon dioxide-methanol intermolecular complexes in interstellar grain mantles
Wetensch. publicatieFaculteit der Wiskunde en Natuurwetenschappe
Nature and evolution of the dominant carbonaceous matter in interplanetary dust particles: effects of irradiation and identification with a type of amorphous carbon
Aims.Interplanetary dust particle (IDP) matter probably evolved under irradiation in the interstellar medium (ISM) and the solar nebula. Currently IDPs are exposed to irradiation in the Solar System. Here the effects of UV and proton processing on IDP matter are studied experimentally. The structure and chemical composition of the bulk of carbon matter in IDPs is characterized. Methods: .Several IDPs were further irradiated in the laboratory using ultraviolet (UV) photons and protons in order to study the effects of such processing. By means of infrared and Raman spectroscopy, IDPs were also compared to different materials that serve as analogs of carbon grains in the dense and diffuse ISM. Results: .The carbonaceous fraction of IDPs is dehydrogenated by exposure to hard UV photons or 1 MeV protons. On the other hand, proton irradiation at lower energies (20 keV) leads to an efficient hydrogenation of the carbonaceous IDP matter. The dominant type of carbon in IDPs, observed with Raman and infrared spectroscopy, is found to be either a form of amorphous carbon (a-C) or hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H), depending on the IDP, consisting of aromatic units with an average domain size of 1.35 nm (5-6 rings in diameter), linked by aliphatic chains. Conclusions: .The D- and 15N-enrichments associated to an aliphatic component in some IDPs are probably the result of chemical reactions at cold temperatures. It is proposed that the amorphous carbon in IDPs was formed by energetic processing (UV photons and cosmic rays) of icy grains, maybe during the dense cloud stage, and more likely on the surface of the disk during the T Tauri phase of our Sun. This would explain the isotopic anomalies and morphology of IDPs. Partial annealing, 300-400°C, is required to convert an organic residue from ice photoprocessing into the amorphous carbon with low heteroatom content found in IDPs. Such annealing might have occurred as the particles approached the Sun and/or during atmospheric entry heating
Spectrally-resolved UV photodesorption of CH4 in pure and layered ices
Context. Methane is among the main components of the ice mantles of
insterstellar dust grains, where it is at the start of a rich solid-phase
chemical network. Quantification of the photon-induced desorption yield of
these frozen molecules and understanding of the underlying processes is
necessary to accurately model the observations and the chemical evolution of
various regions of the interstellar medium. Aims. This study aims at
experimentally determining absolute photodesorption yields for the CH4 molecule
as a function of photon energy. The influence of the ice composition is also
investigated. By studying the methane desorption from layered CH4:CO ice,
indirect desorption processes triggered by the excitation of the CO molecules
is monitored and quantified. Methods. Tunable monochromatic VUV light from the
DESIRS beamline of the SOLEIL synchrotron is used in the 7 - 13.6 eV (177 - 91
nm) range to irradiate pure CH4 or layers of CH4 deposited on top of CO ice
samples. The release of species in the gas phase is monitored by quadrupole
mass spectrometry and absolute photodesorption yields of intact CH4 are
deduced. Results. CH4 photodesorbs for photon energies higher than ~9.1 eV
(~136 nm). The photodesorption spectrum follows the absorption spectrum of CH4,
which confirms a desorption mechanism mediated by electronic transitions in the
ice. When it is deposited on top of CO, CH4 desorbs between 8 and 9 eV with a
pattern characteristic of CO absorption, indicating desorption induced by
energy transfer from CO molecules. Conclusions. The photodesorption of CH4 from
the pure ice in various interstellar environments is around 2.0 x 10^-3
molecules per incident photon. Results on CO-induced indirect desorption of CH4
provide useful insights for the generalization of this process to other
molecules co-existing with CO in ice mantles
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