485 research outputs found
Protostar Formation in Magnetic Molecular Clouds beyond Ion Detachment: I. Formulation of the Problem and Method of Solution
We formulate the problem of the formation of magnetically supercritical cores
in magnetically subcritical parent molecular clouds, and the subsequent
collapse of the cores to high densities, past the detachment of ions from
magnetic field lines and into the opaque regime. We employ the six-fluid MHD
equations, accounting for the effects of grains (negative, positive and
neutral) including their inelastic collisions with other species. We do not
assume that the magnetic flux is frozen in any of the charged species. We
derive a generalized Ohm's law that explicitly distinguishes between flux
advection (and the associated process of ambipolar diffusion) and Ohmic
dissipation, in order to assess the contribution of each mechanism to the
increase of the mass-to-flux ratio of the central parts of a collapsing core
and possibly to the resolution of the magnetic flux problem of star formation.
We show how our formulation is related to and can be transformed into the
traditional, directional formulation of the generalized Ohm's law, and we
derive formulae for the perpendicular, parallel and Hall conductivities
entering the latter, which include, for the first time, the effect of inelastic
collisions between grains. In addition, we present a general (valid in any
geometry) solution for the velocities of charged species as functions of the
velocity of the neutrals and of the effective flux velocity (which can in turn
be calculated from the dynamics of the system and Faraday's law). The last two
sets of formulae can be adapted for use in any general non-ideal MHD code to
study phenomena beyond star formation in magnetic clouds. The results,
including a detailed parameter study, are presented in two accompanying papers.Comment: 17 pages, emulateapj; accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Mechanism of Magnetic Flux Loss in Molecular Clouds
We investigate the detailed processes working in the drift of magnetic fields
in molecular clouds. To the frictional force, whereby the magnetic force is
transmitted to neutral molecules, ions contribute more than half only at cloud
densities , and charged grains contribute more
than 90% at . Thus grains play a decisive role
in the process of magnetic flux loss. Approximating the flux loss time by
a power law , where is the mean field strength in
the cloud, we find , characteristic to ambipolar diffusion,
only at . At higher densities,
decreases steeply with , and finally at , where magnetic fields
effectively decouple from the gas, is attained, reminiscent of
Ohmic dissipation, though flux loss occurs about 10 times faster than by Ohmic
dissipation. Ohmic dissipation is dominant only at . While ions and electrons drift in the direction of
magnetic force at all densities, grains of opposite charges drift in opposite
directions at high densities, where grains are major contributors to the
frictional force. Although magnetic flux loss occurs significantly faster than
by Ohmic dissipation even at very high densities as , the process going on at high densities is quite different from ambipolar
diffusion in which particles of opposite charges are supposed to drift as one
unit.Comment: 34 pages including 9 postscript figures, LaTex, accepted by
Astrophysical Journal (vol.573, No.1, July 1, 2002
The Origin of Jovian Planets in Protostellar Disks: The Role of Dead Zones
The final masses of Jovian planets are attained when the tidal torques that
they exert on their surrounding protostellar disks are sufficient to open gaps
in the face of disk viscosity, thereby shutting off any further accretion. In
sufficiently well-ionized disks, the predominant form of disk viscosity
originates from the Magneto-Rotational Instability (MRI) that drives
hydromagnetic disk turbulence. In the region of sufficiently low ionization
rate -- the so-called dead zone -- turbulence is damped and we show that lower
mass planets will be formed. We considered three ionization sources (X-rays,
cosmic rays, and radioactive elements) and determined the size of a dead zone
for the total ionization rate by using a radiative, hydrostatic equilibrium
disk model developed by Chiang et al. (2001). We studied a range of surface
mass density (Sigma_{0}=10^3 - 10^5 g cm^{-2}) and X-ray energy (kT_{x}=1 - 10
keV). We also compared the ionization rate of such a disk by X-rays with cosmic
rays and find that the latter dominate X-rays in ionizing protostellar disks
unless the X-ray energy is very high (5 - 10 keV). Among our major conclusions
are that for typical conditions, dead zones encompass a region extending out to
several AU -- the region in which terrestrial planets are found in our solar
system. Our results suggest that the division between low and high mass planets
in exosolar planetary systems is a consequence of the presence of a dead zone
in their natal protoplanetary disks. We also find that the extent of a dead
zone is mainly dependent on the disk's surface mass density. Our results
provide further support for the idea that Jovian planets in exosolar systems
must have migrated substantially inwards from their points of origin.Comment: 28 pages, 10 figures, accepted by Ap
Atomic Diagnostics of X-ray Irradiated Protoplanetary Disks
We study atomic line diagnostics of the inner regions of protoplanetary disks
with our model of X-ray irradiated disk atmospheres which was previously used
to predict observable levels of the NeII and NeIII fine-structure transitions
at 12.81 and 15.55mum. We extend the X-ray ionization theory to sulfur and
calculate the fraction of sulfur in S, S+, S2+ and sulfur molecules. For the
D'Alessio generic T Tauri star disk, we find that the SI fine-structure line at
25.55mum is below the detection level of the Spitzer Infrared Spectrometer
(IRS), in large part due to X-ray ionization of atomic S at the top of the
atmosphere and to its incorporation into molecules close to the mid-plane. We
predict that observable fluxes of the SII 6718/6732AA forbidden transitions are
produced in the upper atmosphere at somewhat shallower depths and smaller radii
than the neon fine-structure lines. This and other forbidden line transitions,
such as the OI 6300/6363AA and the CI 9826/9852AA lines, serve as complementary
diagnostics of X-ray irradiated disk atmospheres. We have also analyzed the
potential role of the low-excitation fine-structure lines of CI, CII, and OI,
which should be observable by SOFIA and Herschel.Comment: Accepted by Ap
A Spherical Model for "Starless" Cores of Magnetic Molecular Clouds and Dynamical Effects of Dust Grains
In the standard picture of isolated star formation, dense ``starless'' cores
are formed out of magnetic molecular clouds due to ambipolar diffusion. Under
the simplest spherical geometry, I demonstrate that ``starless'' cores formed
this way naturally exhibit a large scale inward motion, whose size and speed
are comparable to those detected recently by Taffala et al. and Williams et al.
in ``starless'' core L1544. My model clouds have a relatively low mass (of
order 10 ) and low field strength (of order 10 G) to begin with.
They evolve into a density profile with a central plateau surrounded by a
power-law envelope, as found previously. The density in the envelope decreases
with radius more steeply than those found by Mouschovias and collaborators for
the more strongly magnetized, disk-like clouds.
At high enough densities, dust grains become dynamically important by greatly
enhancing the coupling between magnetic field and the neutral cloud matter. The
trapping of magnetic flux associated with the enhanced coupling leads, in the
spherical geometry, to a rapid assemblage of mass by the central protostar,
which exacerbates the so-called ``luminosity problem'' in star formation.Comment: 27 pages, 4 figures, accepted by Ap
The role of damped Alfven waves on magnetospheric accretion models of young stars
We examine the role of Alfven wave damping in heating the plasma in the
magnetic funnels of magnetospheric accretion models of young stars. We study
four different damping mechanisms of the Alfven waves: nonlinear, turbulent,
viscous-resistive and collisional. Two different possible origins for the
Alfven waves are discussed: 1) Alfven waves generated at the surface of the
star by the shock produced by the infalling matter; and 2) Alfven waves
generated locally in the funnel by the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. We find
that, in general, the damping lengths are smaller than the tube length. Since
thermal conduction in the tube is not efficient, Alfven waves generated only at
the star's surface cannot heat the tube to the temperatures necessary to fit
the observations. Only for very low frequency Alfven waves ~10^{-5} the ion
cyclotron frequency, is the viscous-resistive damping length greater than the
tube length. In this case, the Alfven waves produced at the surface of the star
are able to heat the whole tube. Otherwise, local production of Alfven waves is
required to explain the observations. The turbulence level is calculated for
different frequencies for optically thin and thick media. We find that
turbulent velocities varies greatly for different damping mechanisms, reaching
\~100 km s^{-1} for the collisional damping of small frequency waves.Comment: 29 pages, 12 figures, to appear in The Astrophysical Journa
2-D models of layered protoplanetary discs: I. The ring instability
In this work we use the radiation hydrodynamic code TRAMP to perform a
two-dimensional axially symmetric model of the layered disc. Using this model
we follow the accumulation of mass in the dead zone due to the radially varying
accretion rate. We found a new type of instability which causes the dead zone
to split into rings. This "ring instability" works due to the positive feedback
between the thickness of the dead zone and the mass accumulation rate.
We give an analytical description of this instability, taking into account
non-zero thickness of the dead zone and deviations from the Keplerian
rotational velocity. The analytical model agrees reasonably well with results
of numerical simulations. Finally, we speculate about the possible role of the
ring instability in protoplanetary discs and in the formation of planets.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Molecular Evolution in Collapsing Prestellar Cores
We have investigated the evolution and distribution of molecules in
collapsing prestellar cores via numerical chemical models, adopting the
Larson-Penston solution and its delayed analogues to study collapse. Molecular
abundances and distributions in a collapsing core are determined by the balance
among the dynamical, chemical and adsorption time scales. When the central
density n_H of a prestellar core with the Larson-Penston flow rises to 3 10^6
cm^{-3}, the CCS and CO column densities are calculated to show central holes
of radius 7000 AU and 4000 AU, respectively, while the column density of N2H+
is centrally peaked. These predictions are consistent with observations of
L1544. If the dynamical time scale of the core is larger than that of the
Larson-Penston solution owing to magnetic fields, rotation, or turbulence, the
column densities of CO and CCS are smaller, and their holes are larger than in
the Larson-Penston core with the same central gas density. On the other hand,
N2H+ and NH3 are more abundant in the more slowly collapsing core. Therefore,
molecular distributions can probe the collapse time scale of prestellar cores.
Deuterium fractionation has also been studied via numerical calculations. The
deuterium fraction in molecules increases as a core evolves and molecular
depletion onto grains proceeds. When the central density of the core is n_H=3
10^6 cm^{-3}, the ratio DCO+/HCO+ at the center is in the range 0.06-0.27,
depending on the collapse time scale and adsorption energy; this range is in
reasonable agreement with the observed value in L1544.Comment: 21 pages, 17 figure
Double In Situ Approach for the Preparation of Polymer Nanocomposite with Multi-functionality
A novel one-step synthetic route, the double in situ approach, is used to produce both TiO2nanoparticles and polymer (PET), and simultaneously forming a nanocomposite with multi-functionality. The method uses the release of water during esterification to hydrolyze titanium (IV) butoxide (Ti(OBu)4) forming nano-TiO2in the polymerization vessel. This new approach is of general significance in the preparation of polymer nanocomposites, and will lead to a new route in the synthesis of multi-functional polymer nanocomposites
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