Inside-Out Planet Formation. VIII. Onset of Planet Formation and the Transition Disk Phase

TL;DR

This paper explores the conditions under which pebbles are trapped at the dead zone inner boundary in protoplanetary disks, influencing the onset of inside-out planet formation and the transition disk phase.

Contribution

It identifies the critical pebble size and accretion rate conditions necessary for pebble trapping at the DZIB, providing boundary conditions for planet formation models.

Findings

Pebble trapping becomes efficient at accretion rates around 10^{-9} M_sun/yr.

Typical pebble size for trapping is approximately 0.5 mm.

The model links transition disk emergence to specific disk accretion conditions.

Abstract

Inside-Out Planet Formation (IOPF) is a theory of {\it in situ} formation via pebble accretion of close-in Earth to Super-Earth mass planets at the pressure maximum associated with the dead zone inner boundary (DZIB), whose location is set initially by thermal ionization of alkali metals at $\sim1,200\:$K. With midplane disk temperatures determined by viscous accretional heating, the radial location of the DZIB depends on the accretion rate of the disk. Here, we investigate the ability of pebbles to be trapped at the DZIB as a function of the accretion rate and pebble size. We discuss the conditions that are needed for pebble trapping to become efficient when the accretion rate drops to $\sim10^{-9}\:M_\odot\:{\rm yr}^{-1}$ and the resulting DZIB is at $\sim 0.1\:$au, which is the expected evolutionary phase of the disk at the onset of IOPF. This provides an important boundary condition for IOPF theory, i.e., the properties of pebbles when planet formation begins. We find for our fiducial model that typical pebble sizes of $\sim0.5\:$mm are needed for pebble trapping to first become efficient at DZIBs near 0.1~au. This model may also provide an explanation for the first emergence of the transition disk phase in protoplanetary disks with accretion rates of $\sim10^{-9}\:M_\odot\:{\rm yr}^{-1}$.