EPoS Contribution
EPoS Contribution
Fragmentation of accretion disks around massive stars

Dominique Meyer
U Tübingen, Tübingen, DE
Binarity is a preponderant element of massive star evolution. Understanding its occurrence around massive protostars would allow us to correlate their final fate as supernova explosion to the parent molecular cloud from which they form. We present preliminary results of 3D gravito-radiation-hydrodynamics simulations starting with the gravitational collapse of a rotating molecular cloud and following the formation and evolution of the accretion disk of the subsequently formed protostar. Since the relevant physical processes responsible for its evolution are at work within its inner region, both sufficient spatial resolution and appropriate microphysics are necessary. Fragmentation probabilities of the disk are derived from the simulations and discussed in the context of spectroscopic binary stars.
Caption: Left-hand panel of the figure shows the minimum Toomre (blue solid line) and Gammie (red dashed line) numbers as a function of time (in kyr). Horizontal lines are the theoretical values of those criteria under which disk fragmentation could occur. Vertical yellow rectangles are the time intervals fulfilling both criteria. Right-hand panel of the figure plots the density field of an accretion disk of about 2.5 kyr old, generated by a 100 Mo rotating molecular cloud having initially 6% of rotational energy with respect to the gravitational energy. Axcis units are in Au and density in g/cm3.
Collaborators:
R. Kuiper, U Tübingen, DE
A. Koelligan, U Tübingen, DE
N.D. Kee, U Tübingen, DE
Suggested Session: Disk Formation