Connecting X-ray and Infrared Variability among Young Stellar Objects: Ruling out potential sources of disk fluctuations

TL;DR

This study coordinated X-ray and infrared observations of young stellar objects to investigate if X-ray activity influences disk variability, finding no significant correlation on timescales of days to weeks.

Contribution

It provides the first simultaneous multi-epoch X-ray and infrared monitoring of young stars, constraining the physical link between high-energy flux and disk emission variability.

Findings

No correlation between X-ray and infrared variability on days to weeks timescales.

X-ray flares do not lead to observable infrared changes within the same period.

X-ray heating is unlikely to significantly influence disk structure changes.

Abstract

Variability in the infrared emission from disks around pre-main sequence stars over the course of days to weeks appears to be common, but the physical cause of the changes in disk structure are not constrained. Here we present coordinated monitoring of one young cluster with the Spitzer and Chandra space telescopes aimed at studying the physical source of the variability. In fall 2011 we obtained ten epochs of Chandra ACIS photometry over a period of 30 days with a roughly 3 day cadence contemporaneous with 20 epochs of Spitzer [3.6],[4.5] photometry over 40 days with a roughly 2 day cadence of the IC 348 cluster. This cadence allows us to search for week to month long responses of the infrared emission to changes in the high-energy flux. We find no strong evidence for a direct link between the X-ray and infrared variability on these timescales among 39 cluster members with circumstellar disks. There is no significant correlation between the shape of the infrared and X-ray light curves, or between the size of the X-ray and infrared variability. Among the stars with an X-ray flare none showed evidence of a correlated change in the infrared photometry on timescales of days to weeks following the flare. This lack of connection implies that X-ray heating of the planet forming region of the disk is not significant, although we cannot rule out rapid or instantaneous changes in infrared emission.