1,000 research outputs found
Stability of the viscously spreading ring
We study analytically and numerically the stability of the pressure-less,
viscously spreading accretion ring. We show that the ring is unstable to small
non-axisymmetric perturbations. To perform the perturbation analysis of the
ring we use a stretching transformation of the time coordinate. We find that to
1st order, one-armed spiral structures, and to 2nd order additionally two-armed
spiral features may appear. Furthermore, we identify a dispersion relation
determining the instability of the ring. The theoretical results are confirmed
in several simulations, using two different numerical methods. These
computations prove independently the existence of a secular spiral instability
driven by viscosity, which evolves into persisting leading and trailing spiral
waves. Our results settle the question whether the spiral structures found in
earlier simulations of the spreading ring are numerical artifacts or genuine
instabilities.Comment: 13 pages, 12 figures; A&A accepte
Vertical shear instability in accretion disc models with radiation transport
The origin of turbulence in accretion discs is still not fully understood.
While the magneto-rotational instability is considered to operate in
sufficiently ionized discs, its role in the poorly ionized protoplanetary disc
is questionable. Recently, the vertical shear instability (VSI) has been
suggested as a possible alternative. Our goal is to study the characteristics
of this instability and the efficiency of angular momentum transport, in
extended discs, under the influence of radiative transport and irradiation from
the central star. We use multi-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations to model a
larger section of an accretion disc. First we study inviscid and weakly viscous
discs using a fixed radial temperature profile in two and three spatial
dimensions. The simulations are then extended to include radiative transport
and irradiation from the central star. In agreement with previous studies we
find for the isothermal disc a sustained unstable state with a weak positive
angular momentum transport of the order of . Under the
inclusion of radiative transport the disc cools off and the turbulence
terminates. For discs irradiated from the central star we find again a
persistent instability with a similar value as for the isothermal
case. We find that the VSI can indeed generate sustained turbulence in discs
albeit at a relatively low level with about few times Comment: 12 pages, 24 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
On the evolution of eccentric and inclined protoplanets embedded in protoplanetary disks
Young planets embedded in their protoplanetary disk interact gravitationally
with it leading to energy and angular momentum exchange. This interaction
determines the evolution of the planet through changes to the orbital
parameters. We investigate changes in the orbital elements of a 20 Earth--mass
planet due to the torques from the disk. We focus on the non-linear evolution
of initially non-vanishing eccentricity and/or inclination . We treat
the disk as a two- or three-dimensional viscous fluid and perform
hydrodynamical simulations with an embedded planet. We find rapid exponential
decay of the planet orbital eccentricity and inclination for small initial
values of and , in agreement with linear theory. For larger values of the decay time increases and the decay rate scales as , consistent with existing theoretical models. For large inclinations
( > 6 deg) the inclination decay rate shows an identical scaling . We find an interesting dependence of the migration on the
eccentricity. In a disk with aspect ratio the migration rate is
enhanced for small non-zero eccentricities (), while for larger values
we see a significant reduction by a factor of . We find no indication
for a reversal of the migration for large , although the torque experienced
by the planet becomes positive when . This inward migration is
caused by the persisting energy loss of the planet.
For non gap forming planets, eccentricity and inclination damping occurs on a
time scale that is very much shorter than the migration time scale. The results
of non linear hydrodynamic simulations are in very good agreement with linear
theory for small and .Comment: accepted for Astronomy & Astrophysics, 16 pages, 16 figures,
animations under:
http://www.tat.physik.uni-tuebingen.de/~kley/publ/paper/eccp.htm
Circumbinary disk evolution
We study the evolution of circumbinary disks surrounding classical T Tau stars. High resolution numerical simulations are employed to model a system consisting of a central eccentric binary star within an accretion disk. The disk is assumed to be infinitesimally thin, however a detailed energy balance including viscous heating and radiative cooling is applied. A novel numerical approach using a parallelized Dual-Grid technique on two different coordinate systems has been implemented. Physical parameters of the setup are chosen to model the close systems of DQ Tau and AK Sco, as well as the wider systems of GG Tau and UY Aur. Our main findings are for the tight binaries a substantial flow of material through the disk gap which is accreted onto the central stars in a phase dependent process. We are able to constrain the parameters of the systems by matching both accretion rates and derived spectral energy distributions to observational data where available
Demonstration of 3-port grating phase relations
We experimentally demonstrate the phase relations of 3-port gratings by
investigating 3-port coupled Fabry-Perot cavities. Two different gratings which
have the same 1st order diffraction efficiency but differ substantially in
their 2nd order diffraction efficiency have been designed and manufactured.
Using the gratings as couplers to Fabry-Perot cavities we could validate the
results of an earlier theoretical description of the phases at a three port
grating
Tidal Barrier and the Asymptotic Mass of Proto Gas-Giant Planets
Extrasolar planets found with radial velocity surveys have masses ranging
from several Earth to several Jupiter masses. While mass accretion onto
protoplanetary cores in weak-line T-Tauri disks may eventually be quenched by a
global depletion of gas, such a mechanism is unlikely to have stalled the
growth of some known planetary systems which contain relatively low-mass and
close-in planets along with more massive and longer period companions. Here, we
suggest a potential solution for this conundrum. In general, supersonic infall
of surrounding gas onto a protoplanet is only possible interior to both of its
Bondi and Roche radii. At a critical mass, a protoplanet's Bondi and Roche
radii are equal to the disk thickness. Above this mass, the protoplanets' tidal
perturbation induces the formation of a gap. Although the disk gas may continue
to diffuse into the gap, the azimuthal flux across the protoplanets' Roche lobe
is quenched. Using two different schemes, we present the results of numerical
simulations and analysis to show that the accretion rate increases rapidly with
the ratio of the protoplanet's Roche to Bondi radii or equivalently to the disk
thickness. In regions with low geometric aspect ratios, gas accretion is
quenched with relatively low protoplanetary masses. This effect is important
for determining the gas-giant planets' mass function, the distribution of their
masses within multiple planet systems around solar type stars, and for
suppressing the emergence of gas-giants around low mass stars
On disc driven inward migration of resonantly coupled planets with application to the system around GJ876
We consider two protoplanets gravitationally interacting with each other and
a protoplanetary disc. The two planets orbit interior to a tidally maintained
disc cavity while the disc interaction indices inward migration. When the
migration is slow enough, the more rapidly migrating outer protoplanet
approaches and becomes locked in a 2:1 commensurability with the inner one.
This is maintained in subsequent evolution. We study this evolution using a
simple anaytic model, full hydrodynamic 2D simulations of the disc planet
system and longer time N body integrations incorporating simple prescriptions
for the effect of the disc on the planet orbits. The eccentricity of the
protoplanets are found to be determined by the migration rate induced in the
outer planet orbit by the external disc. We apply our results to the recently
discovered resonant planets around GJ876. Simulation shows that a disc with
parameters expected for protoplanetary discs causes trapping in the 2:1
commensurability when the planets orbit in an inner cavity and that
eccentricities in the observed range may be obtained.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, submitted to A&A on 30/03/200
On the observability of bow shocks of Galactic runaway OB stars
Massive stars that have been ejected from their parent cluster and
supersonically sailing away through the interstellar medium (ISM) are
classified as exiled. They generate circumstellar bow shock nebulae that can be
observed. We present two-dimensional, axisymmetric hydrodynamical simulations
of a representative sample of stellar wind bow shocks from Galactic OB stars in
an ambient medium of densities ranging from n_ISM=0.01 up to 10.0/cm3.
Independently of their location in the Galaxy, we confirm that the infrared is
the most appropriated waveband to search for bow shocks from massive stars.
Their spectral energy distribution is the convenient tool to analyze them since
their emission does not depend on the temporary effects which could affect
unstable, thin-shelled bow shocks. Our numerical models of Galactic bow shocks
generated by high-mass (~40 Mo) runaway stars yield H fluxes which
could be observed by facilities such as the SuperCOSMOS H-Alpha Survey. The
brightest bow shock nebulae are produced in the denser regions of the ISM. We
predict that bow shocks in the field observed at Ha by means of
Rayleigh-sensitive facilities are formed around stars of initial mass larger
than about 20 Mo. Our models of bow shocks from OB stars have the emission
maximum in the wavelength range 3 <= lambda <= 50 micrometer which can be up to
several orders of magnitude brighter than the runaway stars themselves,
particularly for stars of initial mass larger than 20 Mo.Comment: 13 pages, 12 figures. Accepted to MNRAS (2016
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