Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published December 20, 2011 | Published
Journal Article Open

CO Rovibrational Emission as a Probe of Inner Disk Structure

Abstract

We present an analysis of CO emission lines from a sample of T Tauri, Herbig Ae/Be, and transitional disks with known inclinations in order to study the structure of inner disk molecular gas. We calculate CO inner radii by fitting line profiles with a simple parameterized model. We find that, for optically thick disks, CO inner radii are strongly correlated with the total system luminosity (stellar plus accretion) and consistent with the dust sublimation radius. Transitional disk inner radii show the same trend with luminosity, but are systematically larger. Using rotation diagram fits, we derive, for classical T Tauri disks, emitting areas consistent with a ring of width ~0.15 AU located at the CO inner radius; emitting areas for transitional disks are systematically smaller. We also measure lower rotational temperatures for transitional disks, and disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars, than for those around T Tauri stars. Finally, we find that rotational temperatures are similar to, or slightly lower than, the expected temperature of blackbody grains located at the CO inner radius, in contrast to expectations of thermal decoupling between gas and dust.

Additional Information

© 2011 American Astronomical Society. Received 2011 May 9; accepted 2011 August 30; published 2011 November 29. The data presented herein were obtained at the W. M. Keck Observatory, which is operated as a scientific partnership among the California Institute of Technology, the University of California, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The Observatory was made possible by the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation.

Attached Files

Published - Salyk2011p16914Astrophys_J.pdf

Files

Salyk2011p16914Astrophys_J.pdf
Files (1.7 MB)
Name Size Download all
md5:fc90a2ac9c7d833cc7c15b52935840f2
1.7 MB Preview Download

Additional details

Created:
August 22, 2023
Modified:
October 24, 2023