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Neal J. Evans II

Publications and source records attributed to Neal J. Evans II.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

CORINOS I: JWST/MIRI Spectroscopy and Imaging of a Class 0 protostar IRAS 15398-3359

The origin of complex organic molecules (COMs) in young Class 0 protostars has been one of the major questions in astrochemistry and star formation. While COMs are thought to form on icy dust grains via gas-grain chemistry, observational constraints on their formation pathways have been limited to gas-phase detection. Sensitive mid-infrared spectroscopy with JWST enables unprecedented investigation of COM formation by measuring their ice absorption features. We present an overview of JWST/MIRI MRS spectroscopy and imaging of a young Class 0 protostar, IRAS 15398-3359, and identify several major solid-state absorption features in the 4.9-28 $μ$m wavelength range. These can be attributed to common ice species, such as H$_2$O, CH$_3$OH, NH$_3$, and CH$_4$, and may have contributions from more complex organic species, such as C$_2$H$_5$OH and CH$_3$CHO. The MRS spectra show many weaker emission lines at 6-8 $μ$m, which are due to warm CO gas and water vapor, possibly from a young embedded disk previously unseen. Finally, we detect emission lines from [Fe II], [Ne II], [S I], and H$_2$, tracing a bipolar jet and outflow cavities. MIRI imaging serendipitously covers the south-western (blue-shifted) outflow lobe of IRAS 15398-3359, showing four shell-like structures similar to the outflows traced by molecular emission at sub-mm wavelengths. This overview analysis highlights the vast potential of JWST/MIRI observations and previews scientific discoveries in the coming years.

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Tracers of Dense Gas in the Outer Galaxy

We have mapped HCN and HCO$^{+}$ (J = 1 $\to$ 0) line emission toward a sample of seven star-forming regions (with 12 + log[O/H] range from 8.34 to 8.69) in the outer Milky Way (Galactocentric distance > 9.5 kpc), using the 14-meter radio telescope of the Taeduk Radio Astronomy Observatory (TRAO). We compare these two molecular lines with other conventional tracers of dense gas, millimeter-wave continuum emission from dust and extinction thresholds ($A_{V} \geq 8$ mag), inferred from the $^{13}$CO line data. HCN and HCO$^{+}$ correlate better with the millimeter emission than with the extinction criterion. A significant amount of luminosity comes from regions below the extinction criterion and outside the millimeter clump for all the clouds. The average fraction of HCN luminosity from within the regions with $A_{V} \geq 8$ mag is $0.343\pm0.225$; for the regions of millimeter emission, it is $0.478\pm0.149$. Based on a comparison with column density maps from Herschel, HCN and HCO$^{+}$ trace dense gas in high column density regions better than does $^{13}$CO. HCO$^{+}$ is less concentrated than HCN for outer Galaxy targets, in contrast with the inner Galaxy sample, suggesting that metallicity may affect the interpretation of tracers of dense gas. The conversion factor between the dense gas mass ($M_{dense}$) and line luminosities of HCN and HCO$^{+}$, when integrated over the whole cloud, is comparable with factors used in extragalactic studies.

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ATOMS: ALMA Three-millimeter Observations of Massive Star-forming regions -- XI. From inflow to infall in hub-filament systems

We investigate the presence of hub-filament systems in a large sample of 146 active proto-clusters, using H$^{13}$CO$^{+}$ J=1-0 molecular line data obtained from the ATOMS survey. We find that filaments are ubiquitous in proto-clusters, and hub-filament systems are very common from dense core scales ($\sim$0.1 pc) to clump/cloud scales ($\sim$1-10 pc). The proportion of proto-clusters containing hub-filament systems decreases with increasing dust temperature ($T_d$) and luminosity-to-mass ratios ($L/M$) of clumps, indicating that stellar feedback from H{\sc ii} regions gradually destroys the hub-filament systems as proto-clusters evolve. Clear velocity gradients are seen along the longest filaments with a mean velocity gradient of 8.71 km s$^{-1}$pc$^{-1}$ and a median velocity gradient of 5.54 km s$^{-1}$pc$^{-1}$. We find that velocity gradients are small for filament lengths larger than $\sim$1~pc, probably hinting at the existence of inertial inflows, although we cannot determine whether the latter are driven by large-scale turbulence or large-scale gravitational contraction. In contrast, velocity gradients below $\sim$1~pc dramatically increase as filament lengths decrease, indicating that the gravity of the hubs or cores starts to dominate gas infall at small scales. We suggest that self-similar hub-filament systems and filamentary accretion at all scales may play a key role in high-mass star formation.

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Slow Star Formation in the Milky Way: Theory Meets Observations

The observed star formation rate of the Milky Way can be explained by applying a metallicity-dependent factor to convert CO luminosity to molecular gas mass and a star formation efficiency per free-fall time that depends on the virial parameter of a molecular cloud. These procedures also predict the trend of star formation rate surface density with Galactocentric radius. The efficiency per free-fall time variation with virial parameter plays the major role in bringing theory into agreement with observations for the total star formation rate, while the metallicity dependence of the CO luminosity to mass conversion is most notable in the variation with Galactocentric radius. Application of these changes resolves a factor of over 100 discrepancy between observed and theoretical star formation rates that has been known for nearly 50 years.

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Nobeyama Survey of Inward Motions toward Cores in Orion Identified by SCUBA-2

In this study, 36 cores (30 starless and 6 protostellar) identified in Orion were surveyed to search for inward motions. We used the Nobeyama 45 m radio telescope, and mapped the cores in the $J = 1\rightarrow0$ transitions of HCO$^+$, H$^{13}$CO$^+$, N$_2$H$^+$, HNC, and HN$^{13}$C. The asymmetry parameter $δV$, which was the ratio of the difference between the HCO$^+$ and H$^{13}$CO$^+$ peak velocities to the H$^{13}$CO$^+$ line width, was biased toward negative values, suggesting that inward motions were more dominant than outward motions. Three starless cores (10% of all starless cores surveyed) were identified as cores with blue-skewed line profiles (asymmetric profiles with more intense blue-shifted emission), and another two starless cores (7%) were identified as candidate blue-skewed line profiles. The peak velocity difference between HCO$^+$ and H$^{13}$CO$^+$ of them was up to 0.9 km s$^{-1}$, suggesting that some inward motions exceeded the speed of sound for the quiescent gas ($\sim10-17$ K). The mean of $δV$ of the five aforementioned starless cores was derived to be $-$0.5$\pm$0.3. One core, G211.16$-$19.33North3, observed using the ALMA ACA in DCO$^+$ $J = 3\rightarrow2$ exhibited blue-skewed features. Velocity offset in the blue-skewed line profile with a dip in the DCO$^+$ $J = 3\rightarrow2$ line was larger ($\sim 0.5$ km s$^{-1}$) than that in HCO$^+$ $J = 1\rightarrow0$ ($\sim 0.2$ km s$^{-1}$), which may represent gravitational acceleration of inward motions. It seems that this core is at the last stage in the starless phase, judging from the chemical evolution factor version 2.0 (CEF2.0).

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Atomic Shocks in the Outflow of L1551 IRS 5 Identified with SOFIA-upGREAT Observations of [OI]

We present velocity resolved SOFIA/upGREAT observations of [OI] and [CII] lines toward a Class I protostar, L1551 IRS 5, and its outflows. The SOFIA observations detect [OI] emission toward only the protostar and [CII] emission toward the protostar and the red-shifted outflow. The [OI] emission has a width of $\sim$100 km s$^{-1}$ only in the blue-shifted velocity, suggesting an origin in shocked gas. The [CII] lines are narrow, consistent with an origin in a photodissociation region. Differential dust extinction from the envelope due to the inclination of the outflows is the most likely cause of the missing red-shifted [OI] emission. Fitting the [OI] line profile with two Gaussian components, we find one component at the source velocity with a width of $\sim$20 km s$^{-1}$ and another extremely broad component at -30 km s$^{-1}$ with a width of 87.5 km s$^{-1}$, the latter of which has not been seen in L1551 IRS 5. The kinematics of these two components resemble cavity shocks in molecular outflows and spot shocks in jets. Radiative transfer calculations of the [OI], high-J CO, and H$_2$O lines in the cavity shocks indicate that [OI] dominates the oxygen budget, making up more than 70% of the total gaseous oxygen abundance and suggesting [O]/[H] of $\sim$1.5$\times$10$^{-4}$. Attributing the extremely broad [OI] component to atomic winds, we estimate the intrinsic mass loss rate of (1.3$\pm$0.8)$\times$ 10$^{-6}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$. The intrinsic mass loss rates derived from low-J CO, [OI], and HI are similar, supporting the model of momentum-conserving outflows, where the atomic wind carries most momentum and drives the molecular outflows.

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ATOMS: ALMA Three-millimeter Observations of Massive Star-forming regions -- IV. Radio Recombination Lines and evolution of star formation efficiencies

We report detection of radio recombination line (RRL) H$_{40α}$ toward 75 sources, with data obtained from ACA observations in the ATOMS survey of 146 active Galactic star forming regions. We calculated ionized gas mass and star formation rate with H40U line emission. The mass of ionized gas is significantly smaller than molecular gas mass, indicating that ionized gas is negligible in the star forming clumps of the ATOMS sample. The star formation rate (SFR$_{{\rm H}_{40α}}$) estimated with RRL H$_{40α}$ agrees well with that (SFR$_{\rm L_{bol}}$) calculated with the total bolometric luminosity (L$_{\rm bol}$) when SFR $\gtrsim 5 {\rm M_\odot My}r^{-1}$, suggesting that millimeter RRLs could well sample the upper part of the initial mass function (IMF) and thus be good tracers for SFR. We also study the relationships between L$_{\rm bol}$ and the molecular line luminosities (L0mol) of CS J=2-1 and HC$_3$N J=11-10 for all the 146 ATOMS sources. The Lbol-L0mol correlations of both the CS J=2-1 and HC3N J=11-10 lines appear approximately linear and these transitions have success in predicting L$_{\rm bol}$ similar to that of more commonly used transitions. The L$_{\rm bol}$-to-L$_{\rm mol}$ ratios or SFR-to-mass ratios (star formation efficiency; SFE) do not change with galactocentric distances (R$_{\rm GC}$). Sources with H$_{40α}$ emission (or H$_{\rm II}$ regions) show higher L$_{\rm bol}$-to-L$_{\rm mol}$ than those without H$_{40α}$ emission, which may be an evolutionary effect.

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TIMES II: Investigating the Relation Between Turbulence and Star-forming Environments in Molecular Clouds

We investigate the effect of star formation on turbulence in the Orion A and Ophiuchus clouds using principal component analysis (PCA). We measure the properties of turbulence by applying PCA on the spectral maps in $^{13}$CO, C$^{18}$O, HCO$^+$ $J=$1$-$0, and CS $J=$2$-$1. First, the scaling relations derived from PCA of the $^{13}$CO maps show that the velocity difference ($δv$) for a given spatial scale ($L$) is the highest in the integral shaped filament (ISF) and L1688, where the most active star formation occurs in the two clouds. The $δv$ increases with the number density and total bolometric luminosity of the protostars in the sub-regions. Second, in the ISF and L1688 regions, the $δv$ of C$^{18}$O, HCO$^+$, and CS are generally higher than that of $^{13}$CO, which implies that the dense gas is more turbulent than the diffuse gas in the star-forming regions; stars form in dense gas, and dynamical activities associated with star formation, such as jets and outflows, can provide energy into the surrounding gas to enhance turbulent motions.

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Which Molecular Cloud Structures Are Bound?

We analyze surveys of molecular cloud structures defined by tracers ranging from CO $J = 1-0$ through $^{13}$CO $J = 1-0$ to dust emission together with NH$_3$ data. The mean value of the virial parameter and the fraction of mass in bound structures depends on the method used to identify structures. Generally, the virial parameter decreases and the fraction of mass in bound structures increases with the effective density of the tracer, the surface density and mass of the structures, and the distance from the center of a galaxy. For the most complete surveys of structures in the Galaxy defined by CO $J = 1-0$, the fraction of mass that is in bound structures is 0.19. For catalogs of other galaxies based on CO $J = 2-1$, the fraction is 0.35. These results offer substantial alleviation of the fundamental problem of slow star formation. If only clouds found to be bound are counted and they are assumed to collapse in a free-fall time at their mean cloud density, the sum over all clouds in a complete survey of the Galaxy yields a predicted star formation rate of 46 solar masses per year, a factor of 6.5 less than if all clouds are bound.

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TIMES I: a Systematic Observation in Multiple Molecular Lines Toward the Orion A and Ophiuchus Clouds

We have used the Taeduk Radio Astronomy Observatory to observe the Orion A and Ophiuchus clouds in the $J=$1$-$0 lines of $^{13}$CO, C$^{18}$O, HCN, HCO$^+$, and N$_2$H$^+$ and the $J=$2$-$1 line of CS. The fully sampled maps with uniform noise levels are used to create moment maps. The variations of the line intensity and velocity dispersion with total column density, derived from dust emission maps, are presented and compared to previous work. The CS line traces dust column density over more than one order of magnitude, and the N$_2$H$^+$ line best traces the highest column density regime ($\log(N_\mathrm{H_2}$) $>$ 22.8). Line luminosities, integrated over the cloud, are compared to those seen in other galaxies. The HCO$^+$-to-HCN luminosity ratio in the Orion A cloud is similar to that of starburst galaxies, while that in the Ophiuchus cloud is in between those of active galactic nuclei and starburst galaxies.

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Molecular Cloud Cores with High Deuterium Fractions: Nobeyama Mapping Survey

We present the results of on-the-fly mapping observations of 44 fields containing 107 SCUBA-2 cores in the emission lines of molecules, N$_2$H$^+$, HC$_3$N, and CCS at 82$-$94 GHz using the Nobeyama 45-m telescope. This study aimed at investigating the physical properties of cores that show high deuterium fractions and might be close to the onset of star formation. We found that the distributions of the N$_2$H$^+$ and HC$_3$N line emissions are approximately similar to that of 850-$μ$m dust continuum emission, whereas the CCS line emission is often undetected or is distributed in a clumpy structure surrounding the peak position of the 850-$μ$m dust continuum emission. Occasionally (12%), we observe the CCS emission which is an early-type gas tracer toward the young stellar object, probably due to local high excitation. Evolution toward star formation does not immediately affect nonthermal velocity dispersion.

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ALMA ACA and Nobeyama observations of two Orion cores in deuterated molecular lines

We mapped two molecular cloud cores in the Orion A cloud with the ALMA ACA 7-m Array and with the Nobeyama 45-m radio telescope. These cores have bright N$_2$D$^+$ emission in single-pointing observations with the Nobeyama 45-m radio telescope, have relatively high deuterium fraction, and are thought to be close to the onset of star formation. One is a star-forming core, and the other is starless. These cores are located along filaments observed in N$_2$H$^+$, and show narrow linewidths of 0.41 km s$^{-1}$ and 0.45 km s$^{-1}$ in N$_2$D$^+$, respectively, with the Nobeyama 45-m telescope. Both cores were detected with the ALMA ACA 7m Array in the continuum and molecular lines at Band 6. The starless core G211 shows clumpy structure with several sub-cores, which in turn show chemical differences. Also, the sub-cores in G211 have internal motions that are almost purely thermal. The starless sub-core G211D, in particular, shows a hint of the inverse P Cygni profile, suggesting infall motion. The star-forming core G210 shows an interesting spatial feature of two N$_2$D$^+$ peaks of similar intensity and radial velocity located symmetrically with respect to the single dust continuum peak. One interpretation is that the two N$_2$D$^+$ peaks represent an edge-on pseudo-disk. The CO outflow lobes, however, are not directed perpendicular to the line connecting both N$_2$D$^+$ peaks.

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Star Formation Occurs in Dense Gas, but What Does "Dense" Mean?

We report results of a project to map HCN and HCO+ J = 1-0 emission toward a sample of molecular clouds in the inner Galaxy, all containing dense clumps that are actively engaged in star formation. We compare these two molecular line tracers with millimeter continuum emission and extinction, as inferred from 13CO, as tracers of dense gas in molecular clouds. The fraction of the line luminosity from each tracer that comes from the dense gas, as measured by AV > 8 mag, varies substantially from cloud to cloud. In all cases, a substantial fraction (in most cases, the majority) of the total luminosity arises in gas below the AV > 8 mag threshold and outside the region of strong mm continuum emission. Measurements of the luminosity of HCN toward other galaxies will likely be dominated by such gas at lower surface density. Substantial, even dominant, contributions to the total line luminosity can arise in gas with densities typical of the cloud as a whole (densities about 100 per cubic cm). Defining the dense clump from the HCN or HCO+ emission itself, similarly to previous studies, leads to a wide range of clump properties, with some being considerably larger and less dense than in previous studies. HCN and HCO+ have similar ability to trace dense gas for the clouds in this sample. For the two clouds with low virial parameters, the 13CO is definitely a worse tracer of the dense gas, but for the other four, it is equally good (or bad) at tracing dense gas.

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Large-scale molecular gas distribution in the M17 cloud complex: dense gas conditions of massive star formation?

The non-uniform distribution of gas and protostars in molecular clouds is caused by combinations of various physical processes that are difficult to separate. We explore this non-uniform distribution in the M17 molecular cloud complex that hosts massive star formation activity using the $^{12}$CO ($J=1-0$) and $^{13}$CO ($J=1-0$) emission lines obtained with the Nobeyama 45m telescope. Differences in clump properties such as mass, size, and gravitational boundedness reflect the different evolutionary stages of the M17-H{\scriptsize II} and M17-IRDC clouds. Clumps in the M17-H{\scriptsize II} cloud are denser, more compact, and more gravitationally bound than those in M17-IRDC. While M17-H{\scriptsize II} hosts a large fraction of very dense gas (27\%) that has column density larger than the threshold of $\sim$ 1 g cm$^{-2}$ theoretically predicted for massive star formation, this very dense gas is deficient in M17-IRDC (0.46\%). Our HCO$^+$ ($J=1-0$) and HCN ($J=1-0$) observations with the TRAO 14m telescope, {\nlqb trace all gas with column density higher than $3\times 10^{22}$ cm$^{-2}$}, confirm the deficiency of high density ($\gtrsim 10^5$ cm$^{-3}$) gas in M17-IRDC. Although M17-IRDC is massive enough to potentially form massive stars, its deficiency of very dense gas and gravitationally bound clumps can explain the current lack of massive star formation.

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Magnetic fields in the infrared dark cloud G34.43+0.24

We present the B-fields mapped in IRDC G34.43+0.24 using 850\,$μ$m polarized dust emission observed with the POL-2 instrument at JCMT. We examine the magnetic field geometries and strengths in the northern, central, and southern regions of the filament. The overall field geometry is ordered and aligned closely perpendicular to the filament's main axis, particularly in regions containing the central clumps MM1 and MM2, whereas MM3 in the north has field orientations aligned with its major axis. The overall field orientations are uniform at large (POL-2 at 14$\arcsec$ and SHARP at 10$\arcsec$) to small scales (TADPOL at 2.5$\arcsec$ and SMA at 1.5$\arcsec$) in the MM1 and MM2 regions. SHARP/CSO observations in MM3 at 350\,$μ$m from Tang et al. show a similar trend as seen in our POL-2 observations. TADPOL observations demonstrate a well-defined field geometry in MM1/MM2 consistent with MHD simulations of accreting filaments. We obtained a plane-of-sky magnetic field strength of 470$\pm$190\,$μ$G, 100$\pm$40\,$μ$G, and 60$\pm$34\,$μ$G in the central, northern and southern regions of G34, respectively, using the updated Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi relation. The estimated value of field strength, combined with column density and velocity dispersion values available in the literature, suggests G34 to be marginally critical with criticality parameter $\rm λ$ values 0.8$\pm$0.4, 1.1$\pm$0.8, and 0.9$\pm$0.5 in the central, northern, and southern regions, respectively. The turbulent motions in G34 are sub-Alfvénic with Alfvénic Mach numbers of 0.34$\pm$0.13, 0.53$\pm$0.30, and 0.49$\pm$0.26 in the three regions. The observed aligned B-fields in G34.43+0.24 are consistent with theoretical models suggesting that B-fields play an important role in guiding the contraction of the cloud driven by gravity.

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The organic chemistry in the innermost, infalling envelope of the Class 0 protostar L483

Context: The protostellar envelopes, outflow and large-scale chemistry of Class~0 and Class~I objects have been well-studied, but while previous works have hinted at or found a few Keplerian disks at the Class~0 stage, it remains to be seen if their presence in this early stage is the norm. Likewise, while complex organics have been detected toward some Class~0 objects, their distribution is unknown as they could reside in the hottest parts of the envelope, in the emerging disk itself or in other components of the protostellar system, such as shocked regions related to outflows. Aims: In this work, we aim to address two related issues regarding protostars: when rotationally supported disks form around deeply embedded protostars and where complex organic molecules reside in such objects. Methods: We observed the deeply embedded protostar, L483, using Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) Band~7 data from Cycles~1 and 3 with a high angular resolution down to $\sim$~0.1$^{\prime\prime}$ (20~au) scales. Results: We find that the kinematics of CS~$J=7$--$6$ and H$^{13}$CN~$J=4$--$3$ are best fitted by the velocity profile from infall under conservation of angular momentum and not by a Keplerian profile. The spatial extents of the observed complex organics are consistent with an estimated ice sublimation radius of the envelope at $\sim$~50~au, suggesting that the complex organics exist in the hot corino of L483. Conclusions: We find that L483 does not harbor a Keplerian disk down to at least $15$~au in radius. Instead, the innermost regions of L483 are undergoing a rotating collapse. This result highlights that some Class~0 objects contain only very small disks, or none at all, with the complex organic chemistry taking place on scales inside the hot corino of the envelope, in a region larger than the emerging disk.

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ALMA Observations of the massive molecular outflow G331.512-0.103 II: physical properties, kinematics, and geometry modeling

We present observations and analysis of the massive molecular outflow G331.512-0.103, obtained with ALMA band 7, continuing the work from Merello et al. (2013). Several lines were identified in the observed bandwidth, consisting of two groups: lines with narrow profiles, tracing the emission from the core ambient medium; and lines with broad velocity wings, tracing the outflow and shocked gas emission. The physical and chemical conditions, such as density, temperature, and fractional abundances are calculated. The ambient medium, or core, has a mean density of $\sim 5\times 10^6$ cm$^{-3}$ and a temperature of $\sim 70$ K. The SiO and SO$_2$ emission trace the very dense and hot part of the shocked outflow, with values of $n_{\rm H_2}\sim10^9$ cm$^{-3}$ and $T \sim 160-200$ K. The interpretation of the molecular emission suggests an expanding cavity geometry powered by stellar winds from a new-born UCHII region, alongside a massive and high-velocity molecular outflow. This scenario, along with the estimated physical conditions, is modeled using the 3D geometry radiative transfer code MOLLIE for the SiO(J$=8-7$) molecular line. The main features of the outflow and the expanding shell are reproduced by the model.

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Thermal balance and comparison of gas and dust properties of dense clumps in the Hi-GAL survey

We present a comparative study of physical properties derived from gas and dust emission in a sample of 1068 dense Galactic clumps. The sources are selected from the crossmatch of the Hi-GAL survey with 16 catalogues of NH$_3$ line emission in its lowest inversion (1,1) and (2,2) transitions. The sample covers a large range in masses and bolometric luminosities, with surface densities above $Σ=0.1$ g cm$^{-2}$ and with low virial parameters $α<1$. The comparison between dust and gas properties shows an overall agreement between $T_{\textit{kin}}$ and $T_{\textit{dust}}$ at volumetric densities $n\gtrsim1.2\times10^{4}$ cm$^{-3}$, and a median fractional abundance $χ$(NH$_3$)$=1.46\times10^{-8}$. While the protostellar clumps in the sample have small differences between $T_{\textit{kin}}$ and $T_{\textit{dust}}$, prestellar clumps have a median ratio $T_{\textit{kin}}/T_{\textit{dust}}=1.24$, suggesting that these sources are thermally decoupled. A correlation is found between the evolutionary tracer $L/M$ and the parameters $T_{\textit{kin}}/T_{\textit{dust}}$ and $χ$(NH$_3$) in prestellar sources and protostellar clumps with $L/M<1$ L$_\odot$ M$_\odot^{-1}$. In addition, a weak correlation is found between non-thermal velocity dispersion and the $L/M$ parameter, possibly indicating an increase of turbulence with protostellar evolution in the interior of clumps. Finally, different processes are discussed to explain the differences between gas and dust temperatures in prestellar candidates, and the origin of non-thermal motions observed in the clumps.

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