3D numerical simulations of photodissociated and photoionized disks

TL;DR

This study uses 3D numerical simulations to explore how UV radiation from a massive star affects nearby gas and dust disks, revealing the formation of ionization fronts, photodissociation regions, and bow shocks, with implications for proplyd evolution.

Contribution

First 3D simulations incorporating EUV/FUV fluxes and non-spherical geometries to model disk photoevaporation and ionization fronts around massive stars.

Findings

Photoevaporated wind propagates from disk surface and becomes ionized.

Photodissociation regions develop in all models with FUV flux.

Disks at different inclinations show similar photodissociation regions.

Abstract

In this work we study the influence of the UV radiation field of a massive star on the evolution of a disklike mass of gas and dust around a nearby star. This system has similarities with the Orion proplyds. We study disks with different inclinations and distances from the source, performing 3D numerical simulations. We use the YGUAZ\'U-A adaptative grid code modified to account for EUV/FUV fluxes and non-spherical mass distributions. We treat H and C photoionization to reproduce the ionization fronts and photodissociation regions observed in proplyds. We also incorporate a wind from the ionizing source, to investigate the formation of the bow shock observed in several proplyds. Our results show that a photoevaporated wind propagates from the disk surface and becomes ionized after an ionization front (IF) seen as a bright peak in Ha maps. We follow the development of an HI region inside the photoevaporated wind which corresponds to a photodissociated region (PDR) for most of our models, except those without a FUV flux. For disks that are at a distance from the source d \geq 0.1 pc, the PDR is thick and the IF is detached from the disk surface. In contrast, for disks that are closer to the source, the PDR is thin and not resolved in our simulations. The IF then coincides with the first grid points of the disk that are facing the ionizing photon source. In both cases, the photoevaporated wind shocks (after the IF) with the wind that comes from the ionizing source, and this interaction region is bright in Ha. Our 3D models produce two emission features: a hemispherically shaped structure (associated with the IF) and a detached bow shock where both winds collide. A photodissociated region develops in all of the models exposed to the FUV flux. More importantly, disks with different inclinations with respect to the ionizating source have relatively similar photodissociation regions. (abridged)