Broadening the Canonical Picture of EUV-Driven Photoevaporation of Accretion Disks

Abstract

Photoevaporation driven by hydrogen-ionizing radiation, also known as extreme-ultraviolet (EUV), profoundly shapes the lives of diverse astrophysical objects. Focusing here mainly on the dispersal of protoplanetary disks, we construct an analytical model accounting for the finite timescales of photoheating and photoionization. The model offers improved estimates for the ionization, temperature, and velocity structures versus distance from the central source, for a given EUV emission rate and spectral hardness. Compared to the classical picture of fully-ionized and isothermal winds with temperatures $\approx 10^4{\rm \,K}$ and speeds $\approx 10{\rm \,km\,s^{-1}}$, our model unveils broader hydrodynamical and thermochemical states of photoevaporative winds. In contrast to the classical picture, T~Tauri stars with EUV luminosities around $10^{30}{\rm \,erg\,s^{-1}}$ have non-isothermal ionized winds at lower temperatures than the classical value if the spectrum is soft, with an average deposited energy per photoionization less than about 3.7\,eV. Conversely, if the spectrum is hard, the winds tend to be atomic and isothermal at most radii in the disk. For lower EUV intensities, even with soft spectra, atomic winds can emerge beyond $\sim 10{\, \rm au}$ through advection. We demonstrate that the analytical model's predictions are in general agreement with detailed radiation-hydrodynamics calculations. The model furthermore illustrates how the energy efficiency of photoevaporation varies with the intensity and spectral hardness of the EUV illumination, as well as addressing discrepancies in the literature around the effectiveness of X-ray photoevaporation. These findings highlight the importance of considering the finite timescales of photoheating and photoionization, both in modeling and in interpreting observational data.