High-resolution Spectroscopy of [Ne II] Emission from TW Hya

TL;DR

This study presents high-resolution spectra of [Ne II] emission from TW Hya, revealing line broadening that suggests turbulence, Keplerian rotation, or photoevaporative flow in the disk, and provides flux limits for other stars.

Contribution

First high-resolution spectral analysis of [Ne II] emission from TW Hya, exploring line broadening mechanisms and setting flux limits for additional T Tauri stars.

Findings

[Ne II] line centered at stellar velocity with 21 km/s FWHM.

Line broadening suggests turbulence, rotation, or photoevaporative flow.

Upper limits on [Ne II] flux for DP Tau and BP Tau.

Abstract

We present high-resolution echelle spectra of [Ne II] 12.81 micron emission from the classical T Tauri star (CTTS) TW Hya obtained with MICHELLE on Gemini North. The line is centered at the stellar radial velocity and has an intrinsic FWHM of 21\pm 4 km/s. The line width is broader than other narrow emission lines typically associated with the disk around TW Hya. If formed in a disk, the line broadening could result from turbulence in a warm disk atmosphere, Keplerian rotation at an average distance of 0.1 AU from the star, or a photoevaporative flow from the optically-thin region of the disk. We place upper limits on the [Ne II] emission flux from the CTTSs DP Tau and BP Tau.