The Millimeter Continuum Size-Frequency Relationship in the UZ Tau E Disk

Tripathi, Anjali; Andrews, Sean M.; Birnstiel, Tilman; Chandler, Claire J.; Isella, Andrea; Perez, Laura M.; Harris, R. J.; Ricci, Luca; Wilner, David J.; Carpenter, John M.; Calvet, N.; Corder, S. A.; Deller, A. T.; Dullemond, C. P.; Greaves, J. S.; Henning, Th.; Kwon, W.; Lazio, J.; Linz, H. und Testi, L. (2018): The Millimeter Continuum Size-Frequency Relationship in the UZ Tau E Disk. In: Astrophysical Journal, Bd. 861, Nr. 1, 64

Abstract

We present high spatial resolution observations of the continuum emission from the young multiple star system UZ Tau at frequencies from 6 to 340 GHz. To quantify the spatial variation of dust emission in the UZ Tau E circumbinary disk, the observed interferometric visibilities are modeled with a simple parametric prescription for the radial surface brightnesses at each frequency. We find evidence that the spectrum steepens with radius in the disk, manifested as a positive correlation between the observing frequency and the radius that encircles a fixed fraction of the emission (R-eff proportional to nu(0.34 +/- 0.08)). The origins of this size-frequency relation are explored in the context of a theoretical framework for the growth and migration of disk solids. While that framework can reproduce a similar size-frequency relation, it predicts a steeper spectrum than that observed. Moreover, it comes closest to matching the data only on timescales much shorter (<= 1 Myr) than the putative UZ Tau age (similar to 2-3 Myr). These discrepancies are direct consequences of the rapid radial drift rates predicted by models of dust evolution in a smooth gas disk. One way to mitigate that efficiency problem is to invoke small-scale gas pressure modulations that locally concentrate drifting solids. If such particle traps reach high-continuum optical depths at 30-340 GHz with a similar to 30%-60%. filling fraction in the inner disk (r less than or similar to 20 au), they can also explain the observed spatial gradient in the UZ Tau E disk spectrum.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Physik
• Themengebiete: 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik > 530 Physik
• ISSN: 0004-637X
• Sprache: Englisch