Collapse and Fragmentation of Molecular Cloud Cores. X. Magnetic Braking of Prolate and Oblate Cores

TL;DR

This study models the collapse of magnetic prolate and oblate molecular cloud cores, showing how magnetic braking influences fragmentation and the formation of single or multiple protostars.

Contribution

It introduces a 3D gravitational radiative hydrodynamics model that includes magnetic effects like braking and ambipolar diffusion, highlighting their role in core collapse outcomes.

Findings

Oblate cores tend to form rings prone to fragmentation.

Prolate cores' collapse outcomes depend on initial density profiles.

Magnetic braking can suppress fragmentation into multiple protostars.

Abstract

The collapse and fragmentation of initially prolate and oblate, magnetic molecular clouds is calculated in three dimensions with a gravitational, radiative hydrodynamics code. The code includes magnetic field effects in an approximate manner: magnetic pressure, tension, braking, and ambipolar diffusion are all modelled. The parameters varied for both the initially prolate and oblate clouds are the initial degree of central concentration of the radial density profile, the initial angular velocity, and the efficiency of magnetic braking (represented by a factor $f_{mb} = 10^{-4}$ or $10^{-3}$). The oblate cores all collapse to form rings that might be susceptible to fragmentation into multiple systems. The outcome of the collapse of the prolate cores depends strongly on the initial density profile. Prolate cores with central densities 20 times higher than their boundary densities collapse and fragment into binary or quadruple systems, whereas cores with central densities 100 times higher collapse to form single protostars embedded in bars. The inclusion of magnetic braking is able to stifle protostellar fragmentation in the latter set of models, as when identical models were calculated without magnetic braking (Boss 2002), those cores fragmented into binary protostars. These models demonstrate the importance of including magnetic fields in studies of protostellar collapse and fragmentation, and suggest that even when magnetic fields are included, fragmentation into binary and multiple systems remains as a possible outcome of protostellar collapse.