Triggered/sequential star formation? A multi-phase ISM study around the prominent IRDC G18.93-0.03

TL;DR

This study investigates the multi-phase interstellar medium around IRDC G18.93-0.03, revealing a layered structure influenced by an HII region, but finds no conclusive evidence of triggered star formation due to the expanding bubble.

Contribution

It provides a detailed multi-wavelength analysis of the IRDC G18.93-0.03 region, highlighting the complex interplay of ionized, atomic, and molecular gas, and assessing the impact of the HII region on star formation.

Findings

The bubble is ionized by an O8.5 star and associated with G18.93.

The IR dark clump G18.93/m may be gravitationally bound.

No conclusive evidence of triggered collapse due to the HII region.

Abstract

G18.93-0.03 is a prominent dust complex within an 0.8deg long filament, with the molecular clump G18.93/m being IR dark from near IR wavelength up to 160mu. Spitzer composite images show an IR bubble spatially associated with G18.93. We use GRS 13CO and IRAM 30m H13CO+ data to disentangle the spatial structure of the region. From ATLASGAL submm data we calculate the gas mass, while we use the H13CO+ line width to estimate its virial mass. Using HERSCHEL data we produce temperature maps from fitting the SED. With the MAGPIS 20cm and SuperCOSMOS Halpha data we trace the ionized gas, and the VGPS HI survey provides information on the atomic hydrogen gas. We show that the bubble is spatially associated with G18.93, located at a kinematic near distance of 3.6kpc. With 280Msun, the most massive clump within G18.93 is G18.93/m. The virial analysis shows that it may be gravitationally bound and has neither Spitzer young stellar objects nor mid-IR point sources within. Fitting the SED reveals a temperature distribution that decreases towards its center, but heating from the ionizing source puts it above the general ISM temperature. We find that the bubble is filled by HII gas, ionized by an O8.5 star. Between the ionizing source and the IR dark clump G18.93/m we find a layered structure, from ionized to atomic to molecular hydrogen, revealing a PDR. Furthermore, we identify an additional velocity component within the bubble's 8mu emission rim at the edge of the infrared dark cloud and speculate that it might be shock induced by the expanding HII region. While the elevated temperature allows for the build-up of larger fragments, and the shock induced velocity component may lead to additional turbulent support, we do not find conclusive evidence that the massive clump G18.93/m is prone to collapse because of the expanding HII region.