arXiv subjects

C. J. Clarke

Publications and source records attributed to C. J. Clarke.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2011

Global mass segregation in hydrodynamical simulations of star formation

Recent analyses of mass segregation diagnostics in star forming regions invite a comparison with the output of hydrodynamic simulations of star formation. In this work we investigate the state of mass segregation of 'stars' (i.e. sink particles in the simulations) in the case of hydrodynamical simulations which omit feedback. We first discuss methods to quantify mass segregation in substructured regions, either based on the minimum spanning tree (Allison's Lambda), or through analysis of correlations between stellar mass and local stellar surface number densities. We find that the presence of even a single 'outlier' (i.e. a massive object far from other stars) can cause the Allison Lambda method to describe the system as inversely mass segregated, even where in reality the most massive sink particles are overwhelmingly in the centres of the subclusters. We demonstrate that a variant of the Lambda method is less susceptible to this tendency but also argue for an alternative representation of the data in the plane of stellar mass versus local surface number density. The hydrodynamical simulations show global mass segregation from very early times which continues throughout the simulation, being only mildly influenced during sub-cluster merging. We find that up to approx. 2-3% of the "massive" sink particles (m > 2.5 Msun) are in relative isolation because they have formed there, although other sink particles can form later in their vicinity. Ejections of massive sinks from subclusters do not contribute to the number of isolated massive sink particles, as the gravitational softening in the calculation suppresses this process.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2010

OB Stars in Stochastic Regimes

The highest-mass stars have the lowest frequency in the stellar IMF, and they are also the most easily observed stars. Thus, the counting statistics for OB stars provide important tests for the fundamental nature and quantitative parameters of the IMF. We first examine some local statistics for the stellar upper-mass limit itself. Then, we examine the parameter space and statistics for extremely sparse clusters that contain OB stars, in the SMC. We find that thus far, these locally observed counting statistics are consistent with a constant stellar upper-mass limit. The sparse OB star clusters easily fall within the parameter space of Monte Carlo simulations of cluster populations. If the observed objects are representative of their cluster birth masses, their existence implies that the maximum stellar mass is largely independent of the parent cluster mass.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2010

Properties of hierarchically forming star clusters

We undertake a systematic analysis of the early (< 0.5 Myr) evolution of clustering and the stellar initial mass function in turbulent fragmentation simulations. These large scale simulations for the first time offer the opportunity for a statistical analysis of IMF variations and correlations between stellar properties and cluster richness. The typical evolutionary scenario involves star formation in small-n clusters which then progressively merge; the first stars to form are seeds of massive stars and achieve a headstart in mass acquisition. These massive seeds end up in the cores of clusters and a large fraction of new stars of lower mass is formed in the outer parts of the clusters. The resulting clusters are therefore mass segregated at an age of 0.5 Myr, although the signature of mass segregation is weakened during mergers. We find that the resulting IMF has a smaller exponent (alpha=1.8-2.2) than the Salpeter value (alpha=2.35). The IMFs in subclusters are truncated at masses only somewhat larger than the most massive stars (which depends on the richness of the cluster) and an universal upper mass limit of 150 Msun is ruled out. We also find that the simulations show signs of the IGIMF effect proposed by Weidner & Kroupa, where the frequency of massive stars is suppressed in the integrated IMF compared to the IMF in individual clusters. We identify clusters through the use of a minimum spanning tree algorithm which allows easy comparison between observational survey data and the predictions of turbulent fragmentation models. In particular we present quantitative predictions regarding properties such as cluster morphology, degree of mass segregation, upper slope of the IMF and the relation between cluster richness and maximum stellar mass. [abridged]

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2009

Radiation-Hydrodynamic Models of X-Ray & EUV Photoevaporating Protoplanetary Discs

(Abridged) We present the first radiation-hydrodynamic model of a protoplanetary disc irradiated with an X-EUV spectrum. In a model where the total ionizing luminosity is divided equally between X-ray and EUV luminosity, we find a photoevaporation rate of 1.4e-8 M_sun/yr, which is two orders of magnitude greater than the case of EUV photoevaporation alone. Thus it is clear that the X-rays are the dominant driving mechanism for photoevaporation. This can be understood inasmuch as X-rays are capable of penetrating much larger columns (~1e22 cm^-2) and can thus effect heating in denser regions and at larger radius than the EUV can. The radial extent of the launching region of the X-ray heated wind is 1-70AU compared with the pure EUV case where the launch region is concentrated around a few AU. When we couple our wind mass-loss rates with models for the disc's viscous evolution, we find that, as in the pure EUV case, there is a photoevaporative switch, such that an inner hole develops at ~ 1 AU at the point that the accretion rate in the disc drops below the wind mass loss rate. At this point, the remaining disc material is quickly removed in the final 15-20% of the disc's lifetime. This is consistent with the 1e5 yr transitional timescale estimated from observations of T-Tauri stars. We also caution that although our mass-loss rates are high compared to some accretion rates observed in young stars, our model has a rather large X-ray luminosity of 2e30 erg/s; further modeling is required in order to investigate the evolutionary implications of the large observed spread of X-ray luminosities in T-Tauri stars.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2008

Gas Phase diagnostics of Protoplanetary disk extension

We investigate the potential of using ratios of fine structure and near-infrared forbidden line transitions of atomic carbon to diagnose protoplanetary disk extension. Using results from 2D photoionisation and radiative transfer modeling of a realistic protoplanetary disk structure irradiated by X-rays from a T Tauri star, we obtain theoretical emission maps from which we construct radial distributions of the strongest emission lines produced in the disk. We show that ratios of fine structure to near-infrared forbidden line emission of atomic carbon are especially promising to constrain the minimum size of gaseous protoplanetary disks. While theoretically viable, the method presents a number of observational difficulties that are also discussed here.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Maximum stellar mass versus cluster membership number revisited

We have made a new compilation of observations of maximum stellar mass versus cluster membership number from the literature, which we analyse for consistency with the predictions of a simple random drawing hypothesis for stellar mass selection in clusters. Previously, Weidner and Kroupa have suggested that the maximum stellar mass is lower, in low mass clusters, than would be expected on the basis of random drawing, and have pointed out that this could have important implications for steepening the integrated initial mass function of the Galaxy (the IGIMF) at high masses. Our compilation demonstrates how the observed distribution in the plane of maximum stellar mass versus membership number is affected by the method of target selection; in particular, rather low n clusters with large maximum stellar masses are abundant in observational datasets that specifically seek clusters in the environs of high mass stars. Although we do not consider our compilation to be either complete or unbiased, we discuss the method by which such data should be statistically analysed. Our very provisional conclusion is that the data is not indicating any striking deviation from the expectations of random drawing.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Eccentricity growth of planetesimals in a self-gravitating protoplanetary disc

We investigate the orbital evolution of planetesimals in a self-gravitating circumstellar disc in the size regime ($\sim 1-5000$ km) where the planetesimals behave approximately as test particles in the disc's non-axisymmetric potential. We find that the particles respond to the stochastic, regenerative spiral features in the disc by executing large random excursions (up to a factor of two in radius in $\sim 1000$ years), although typical random orbital velocities are of order one tenth of the Keplerian speed. The limited time frame and small number of planetesimals modeled does not permit us to discern any {\it net} direction of planetesimal migration. Our chief conclusion is that the high eccentricities ($\sim 0.1$) induced by interaction with spiral features in the disc is likely to be highly unfavourable to the collisional growth of planetesimals in this size range while the disc is in the self-gravitating regi me. Thus {\it if}, as recently argued by Rice et al 2004, 2006, the production of planetesimals gets under way when the disc is in the self-gravitating regime (either at smaller planetesimal size scales, where gas drag is important, or via gravitational fragmentation of the solid component), then the planetesimals thus produced would not be able to grow collisionally until the disc ceased to be self-gravitating. It is unclear, however,given the large amplitude excursions undergone by planetesimals in the self-gravitating disc, whether they would be retained in the disc throughout this period, or whether they would instead be lost to the central star.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Disc evolution and the relationship between $L_{\rm acc}$ and $L_\ast$ in T Tauri stars

We investigate the evolution of accretion luminosity $L_{\rm acc}$ and stellar luminosity ${L_\ast}$ in pre-mainsequence stars. We make the assumption that when the star appears as a Class II object, the major phase of accretion is long past, and the accretion disc has entered its asymptotic phase. We use an approximate stellar evolution scheme for accreting pre-mainsequence stars based on Hartmann, Cassen & Kenyon, 1997. We show that the observed range of values $k = L_{\rm acc}/L_\ast$ between 0.01 and 1 can be reproduced if the values of the disc mass fraction $M_{\rm disc}/M_*$ at the start of the T Tauri phase lie in the range 0.01 -- 0.2, independent of stellar mass. We also show that the observed upper bound of $L_{\rm acc} \sim L_\ast$ is a generic feature of such disc accretion. We conclude that as long as the data uniformly fills the region between this upper bound and observational detection thresholds, then the degeneracies between age, mass and accretion history severely limit the use of this data for constraining possible scalings between disc properties and stellar mass.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

Origin of the Metallicity Dependence of Exoplanet Host Stars in the Protoplanetary Disk Mass Distribution

The probability of a star hosting a planet that is detectable in radial velocity surveys increases Ppl(Z) oc 10^2Z, where Z is metallicity. Core accretion models reproduce this trend, since the protoplanetary disk of a high metallicity star has a high density of solids and so forms cores which accrete gas before the primordial gas disk dissipates. This paper considers the origin of the form of Ppl(Z). We introduce a simple model in which detectable planets form when the mass of solids in the protoplanetary disk, Ms, exceeds a critical value. In this model the form of Ppl(Z) is a direct reflection of the distribution of protoplanetary disk masses, Mg, and the observed Ppl(Z) is reproduced if P(Mg>Mg') oc 1/Mg'^2. We argue that a protoplanetary disk's sub-mm dust mass is a pristine indicator of the mass available for planet-building and find the observed sub-mm disk mass distribution is consistent with the observed Ppl(Z) if Ms>0.5M_J is required to form detectable planets. Any planet formation model which imposes a critical solid mass for planet formation would reproduce the observed Ppl(Z), and core accretion models are empirically consistent with a threshold criterion. We identify 7 protoplanetary disks which, by rigid application of this criterion, would be expected to form detectable planets. A testable prediction is that Ppl(Z) should flatten both for Z>0.5dex and as more distant and lower mass planets are discovered. Further, combining this model with one in which the evolution of a star's debris disk is also influenced by the solid mass in its protoplanetary disk, results in the prediction that debris disks detected around stars with planets should be more infrared luminous than those around stars without planets in tentative agreement with recent observations.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

The formation of extreme mass ratio binary stars: a tribute to Eduardo De lgado Donate

Eduardo Delgado was due to have presented a poster at this meeting on his latest results on the formation of extreme mass ratio binaries. Tragically, Eduardo was among those killed in a hiking accident in Tenerife earlier this year. As his PhD supervisor, and as a longstanding collaborator, the organisers of this meeting kindly invited me to incorporate a report on his most recent work into a more general tribute to his life and work. I will reflect on Eduardo's scientific career, the problems that motivated him and his achievements, focusing particularly on a problem which had intrigued us both for several years and on which Eduardo was making important progress at the time of his death. Finally, I will mention the personal qualities that Eduardo brought to his work and the acute sense of loss that is shared by all those - friends and collaborators - who were privileged to know him.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

Massive stars: Feedback effects in the local universe

We examine self-consistent parameterizations of the high-mass stellar population and resulting feedback, including mechanical, radiative, and chemical feedback, as we understand them locally. To date, it appears that the massive star population follows simple power-law clustering that extends down to individual field OB stars, and the robust stellar IMF seems to have a constant upper-mass limit. These properties result in specific patterns in the HII region LF and ionization of the diffuse, warm ionized medium. The resulting SNe generate superbubbles whose size distribution is also described by a simple power law, and from which a galaxy's porosity parameter is easily derived. A critical star-formation threshold can then be estimated, above which the escape of Lyman continuum photons, hot gas, and nucleosynthetic products is predicted. A first comparison with a large H-alpha sample of galaxies is broadly consistent with this prediction, and suggests that ionizing photons likely escapes from starburst galaxies. The superbubble size distribution also offers a basis for a Simple Inhomogeneous Model for galactic chemical evolution, which is especially relevant to metal-poor systems and instantaneous metallicity distributions. This model offers an alternative interpretation of the Galactic halo metallicity distribution and emphasizes the relative importance of star-formation intensity, in addition to age, in a system's evolution. The fraction of zero-metallicity, Population III stars is easily predicted for any such model. We emphasize that all these phenomena can be modeled in a simple, analytic framework over an extreme range in scale, offering powerful tools for understanding the role of massive stars in the cosmos. (Abridged)

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

The Photoevaporation of Discs Around Young Stars in Massive Clusters

We present models in which the photoevaporation of discs around young stars by an external ultraviolet source (as computed by Adams et al 2004) is coupled with the internal viscous evolution of the discs. These models are applied to the case of the Orion Nebula Cluster, where the presence of a strong ultraviolet field from the central OB stars, together with a detailed census of circumstellar discs and photoevaporative flows, is well established. In particular we investigate the constraints that are placed on the initial disc properties in the ONC by the twin requirement that most stars possess a disc on a scale of a few A.U., but that only a minority ($< 20 %$) are resolved by HST at a scale of 50 A.U.. We find that these requirements place very weak constraints on the initial radius distribution of circumstellar discs: the resulting size distribution readily forgets the initial radius distribution, owing to the strong positive dependence of the photoevaporation rate on disc radius. Instead, the scarcity of large discs reflects the relative scarcity of initially massive discs (with mass $> 0.1 M_\odot$). The ubiquity of discs on a small scale, on the other hand, mainly constrains the timespan over which the discs have been exposed to the ultraviolet field ($< 2 $Myr). We argue that the discs that are resolved by HST represent a population of discs in which self-gravity was important at the time that the dominant central OB star switched on, but that, according to our models, self-gravity is unlikely to be important in these discs at the present time. We discuss the implications of our results for the so-called proplyd lifetime problem.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

The $\dot{M} - M$ relationship in pre-main sequence stars

We examine the recent data and analysis of Natta et al. concerning the accretion rate on to young stars as a function of stellar mass, and conclude that the apparently steep dependence of accretion rate on mass is strongly driven by selection/detection thresholds. We argue that a convincing demonstration of a physical relationship between accretion and stellar mass requires further studies which, as is the case for Natta et al., include information on upper limits, and which quantify the possible incompleteness of the sample, at both low and high accretion rates. We point out that the distribution of detections in the ($M, \dot{M}$)-plane can in principle be used to test conventional accretion disc evolutionary models, and that higher sensitivity observations might be able to test the hypothesis of accelerated disc clearing at late times.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Disk Evolution in Young Binaries: from Observations to Theory

The formation of a binary system surrounded by disks is the most common outcome of stellar formation. Hence studying and understanding the formation and the evolution of binary systems and associated disks is a cornerstone of star formation science. Moreover, since the components within binary systems are coeval and the sizes of their disks are fixed by the tidal truncation of their companion, binary systems provide an ideal "laboratory" in which to study disk evolution under well defined boundary conditions. In this paper, we review observations of several inner disk diagnostics in multiple systems, including hydrogen emission lines (indicative of ongoing accretion), $K-L$ and $K-N$ color excesses (evidence of warm inner disks), and polarization (indicative of the relative orientations of the disks around each component). We examine to what degree these properties are correlated within binary systems and how this degree of correlation depends on parameters such as separation and binary mass ratio. These findings will be interpreted both in terms of models that treat each disk as an isolated reservoir and those in which the disks are subject to re-supply from some form of circumbinary reservoir, the observational evidence for which we will also critically review. The planet forming potential of multiple star systems is discussed in terms of the relative lifetimes of disks around single stars, binary primaries and binary secondaries. Finally, we summarize several potentially revealing observational problems and future projects that could provide further insight into disk evolution in the coming decade

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

The Jeans mass and the origin of the knee in the IMF

We use numerical simulations of the fragmentation of a 1000 solar mass molecular cloud and the formation of a stellar cluster to study how the initial conditions for star formation affect the resulting initial mass function (IMF). In particular, we are interested in the relation between the thermal Jeans mass in a cloud and the knee of the initial mass function, i.e. the mass separating the region with a flat IMF slope from that typified by a steeper, Salpeter-like, slope. In three isothermal simulations with M_J=1 solar mass, M_J=2 solar masses and M_J=5 solar masses, the number of stars formed, at comparable dynamical times, scales roughly with the number of initial Jeans masses in the cloud. The mean stellar mass also increases (though less than linearly) with the initial Jeans mass in the cloud. It is found that the IMF in each case displays a prominent knee, located roughly at the mass scale of the initial Jeans mass. Thus clouds with higher initial Jeans masses produce IMFs which are shallow to higher masses. This implies that a universal IMF requires a physical mechanism that sets the Jeans mass to be near 1 solar mass. Simulations including a barotropic equation of state as suggested by Larson, with cooling at low densities followed by gentle heating at higher densities, are able to produce realistic IMFs with the knee located at approximately 1 solar mass, even with an initial M_J=5 solar masses. We therefore suggest that the observed universality of the IMF in the local Universe does not require any fine tuning of the initial conditions in star forming clouds but is instead imprinted by details of the cooling physics of the collapsing gas.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Photoevaporation of protoplanetary discs I: hydrodynamic models

In this paper we consider the effect of the direct ionizing stellar radiation field on the evolution of protoplanetary discs subject to photoevaporative winds. We suggest that models which combine viscous evolution with photoevaporation of the disc (e.g. Clarke, Gendrin & Sotomayor 2001) incorrectly neglect the direct field after the inner disc has drained, at late times in the evolution. We construct models of the photoevaporative wind produced by the direct field, first using simple analytic arguments and later using detailed numerical hydrodynamics. We find that the wind produced by the direct field at late times is much larger than has previously been assumed, and we show that the mass-loss rate scales as $R_{in}^{1/2}$ (where $R_{in}$ is the radius of the instantaneous inner disc edge). We suggest that this result has important consequences for theories of disc evolution, and go on to consider the effects of this result on disc evolution in detail in a companion paper (Alexander, Clarke & Pringle 2006b).

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Photoevaporation of protoplanetary discs II: evolutionary models and observable properties

We present a new model for protoplanetary disc evolution. This model combines viscous evolution with photoevaporation of the disc, in a manner similar to Clarke, Gendrin & Sotomayor (2001). However in a companion paper (Alexander, Clarke & Pringle 2006a) we have shown that at late times such models must consider the effect of stellar radiation directly incident on the inner disc edge, and here we model the observational implications of this process. We find that the entire disc is dispersed on a time-scale of order $10^5$yr after a disc lifetime of a few Myr, consistent with observations of T Tauri (TT) stars. We use a simple prescription to model the spectral energy distribution of the evolving disc, and demonstrate that the model is consistent with observational data across a wide range of wavelengths. We note also that the model predicts a short ``inner hole'' phase in the evolution of all TT discs, and make predictions for future observations at mid-infrared and millimetre wavelengths.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2005

Constraints on the formation mechanism of the planetary mass companion of 2MASS 1207334-393254

In this paper we discuss the nature and the possible formation scenarios of the companion of the brown dwarf 2MASS 1207334-393254. We initially discuss the basic physical properties of this object and conclude that, although from its absolute mass ($5M_{\rm Jup}$), it is a planetary object, in terms of its mass ratio $q$ and of its separation $a$ with respect to the primary brown dwarf, it is consistent with the statistical properties of binaries with higher primary mass. We then explore the possible formation mechanism for this object. We show that the standard planet formation mechanism of core accretion is far too slow to form this object within 10 Myr, the observed age of the system. On the other hand, the alternative mechanism of gravitational instability (proposed both in the context of planet and of binary formation) may, in principle, work and form a system with the observed properties.

astro-ph↗