Structured velocity field in the inner envelope of B335: ALMA observations of rare CO isotopologues

TL;DR

This study uses ALMA observations of rare CO isotopologues to analyze the velocity structure of B335's inner envelope, revealing complex infall motions likely caused by non-isotropic accretion rather than simple collapse models.

Contribution

It provides detailed velocity profiles of B335's inner envelope using rare CO isotopologues, offering new insights into the infall processes during early star formation.

Findings

Double-peaked C$^{17}$O line profiles indicate complex velocity components.

Infall motions are identified as the cause of the velocity field, not rotation or outflow.

Non-isotropic accretion along outflow cavity walls explains observed profiles.

Abstract

Studying Class 0 objects is very important, as it allows to characterize dynamical processes at the onset of the star formation process, and to determine the physical mechanisms responsible for the outcome of the collapse. Observations of dense gas tracers allow the characterization of key kinematics of the gas directly involved in the star-formation process, such as infall, outflow or rotation. This work aims at investigating the molecular line velocity profiles of the Class 0 protostellar object B335 and attempts to put constraints on the infall motions happening in the circumstellar gas of the object.} Observations of C$^{17}$O (1-0), C$^{18}$O (1-0) and $^{12}CO$ (2-1) transitions are presented and the spectral profiles are analyzed at envelope radii between 100 and 860 au. C$^{17}$O emission presents a double peaked line profile distributed in a complex velocity field. Both peaks present an offset of 0.2 to 1 km s$^{-1}$ from the systemic velocity of the source in the probed area. The optical depth of the C$^{17}$O emission has been estimated and found to be less than 1, suggesting that the two velocity peaks trace two distinct velocity components of the gas in the inner envelope. After discarding possible motions that could produce the complex velocity pattern, such as rotation and outflow, it is concluded that infall is producing the velocity field. Because inside-out symmetric collapse cannot explain those observed profiles, it is suggested that those are produced by non-isotropic accretion from the envelope into the central source along the outflow cavity walls.