The study of dynamical processes in protoplanetary disks is essential to understand planet formation. In this context, transition disks are prime targets because they are at an advanced stage of disk clearing and may harbor direct signatures of disk
evolution. In this paper, we aim to derive new constraints on the structure of the transition disk MWC 758, to detect non-axisymmetric features and understand their origin. We obtained infrared polarized intensity observations of the protoplanetary disk MWC 758 with SPHERE/VLT at 1.04 microns to resolve scattered light at a smaller inner working angle (0.093) and a higher angular resolution (0.027) than previously achieved. We observe polarized scattered light within 0.53 (148 au) down to the inner working angle (26 au) and detect distinct non-axisymmetric features but no fully depleted cavity. The two small-scale spiral features that were previously detected with HiCIAO are resolved more clearly, and new features are identified, including two that are located at previously inaccessible radii close to the star. We present a model based on the spiral density wave theory with two planetary companions in circular orbits. The best model requires a high disk aspect ratio (H/r~0.20 at the planet locations) to account for the large pitch angles which implies a very warm disk. Our observations reveal the complex morphology of the disk MWC758. To understand the origin of the detected features, the combination of high-resolution observations in the submillimeter with ALMA and detailed modeling is needed.
Young close binaries clear central cavities in their surrounding circumbinary disk from which the stars can still accrete material. This process takes place within the very first astronomical units, and is still not well constrained as the observatio
nal evidence has been gathered, until now, only by means of spectroscopy. The young object HD200775 (MWC361) is a massive spectroscopic binary (separation of ~15.9mas, ~5.0~AU), with uncertain classification (early/late Be), that shows a strong and variable Halpha emission. We aim to study the mechanisms that produce the Halpha line at the AU-scale. Combining the radial velocity measurements and astrometric data available in the literature, we determined new orbital parameters. With the VEGA instrument on the CHARA array, we spatially and spectrally resolved the Halpha emission of HD200775, at low and medium spectral resolutions (R~1600 and 5000) over a full orbital period (~3.6 years). We observe that the Halpha equivalent width varies with the orbital phase, and increases close to periastron, as expected from theoretical models that predict an increase of the mass transfer from the circumbinary disk to the primary disk. In addition, using spectral visibilities and differential phases, we find marginal variations of the typical extent of the Halpha emission (at 1 to 2-sigma level) and location (at 1 to 5-sigma level). The spatial extent of the Halpha emission, as probed by a Gaussian FWHM, is minimum at the ascending node (0.67+/-0.20 mas, i.e., 0.22+/-0.06 AU), and more than doubles at periastron. In addition, the Gaussian photocenter is slightly displaced in the direction opposite to the secondary, ruling out the scenario in which all or most of the Halpha emission is due to accretion onto the secondary. These findings, together with the wide Halpha line profile, may be due to a non-spherical wind enhanced at periastron.
Circumstellar disks surrounding young stars are known to be the birthplaces of planets, and the innermost astronomical unit is of particular interest. We present new long-baseline spectro-interferometric observations of the HerbigAe star, HR5999, obt
ained in the H and K bands with the AMBER instrument at the VLTI, and aim to produce near-infrared images at the sub-AU spatial scale. We spatially resolve the circumstellar material and reconstruct images using the MiRA algorithm. In addition, we interpret the interferometric observations using models that assume that the near-infrared excess is dominated by the emission of a circumstellar disk. We compare the images reconstructed from the VLTI measurements to images obtained using simulated model data. The K-band image reveals three main elements: a ring-like feature located at ~0.65 AU, a low surface brightness region inside, and a central spot. At the maximum angular resolution of our observations (1.3 mas), the ring is resolved while the central spot is only marginally resolved, preventing us from revealing the exact morphology of the circumstellar environment. We suggest that the ring traces silicate condensation, i.e., an opacity change, in a circumstellar disk around HR 5999. We build a model that includes a ring at the silicate sublimation radius and an inner disk of low surface brightness responsible for a large amount of the near-infrared continuum emission. The model successfully fits the SED, visibilities, and closure phases, and provides evidence of a low surface brightness region inside the silicate sublimation radius. This study provides additional evidence that in HerbigAe stars, there is material in a low surface brightness region, probably a low optical depth region, located inside the silicate sublimation radius and of unknown nature.
Studying the physical conditions in circumstellar disks is a crucial step toward understanding planet formation. Of particular interest is the case of HD 100546, a Herbig Be star that presents a gap within the first 13 AU of its protoplanetary disk,
that may originate in the dynamical interactions of a forming planet. We gathered a large amount of new interferometric data using the AMBER/VLTI instrument in the H- and K-bands to spatially resolve the warm inner disk and constrain its structure. Then, combining these measurements with photometric observations, we analyze the circumstellar environment of HD 100546 in the light of a passive disk model based on 3D Monte-Carlo radiative transfer. Finally, we use hydrodynamical simulations of gap formation by planets to predict the radial surface density profile of the disk and test the hypothesis of ongoing planet formation. The SED and the NIR interferometric data are adequately reproduced by our model. We show that the H- and K-band emissions are coming mostly from the inner edge of the internal dust disk, located near 0.24 AU from the star, i.e., at the dust sublimation radius in our model. We directly measure an inclination of $33^{circ} pm 11^{circ}$ and a position angle of $140^{circ} pm 16^{circ}$ for the inner disk. This is similar to the values found for the outer disk ($i simeq 42^{circ}$, $PA simeq 145^{circ}$), suggesting that both disks may be coplanar. We finally show that 1 to 8 Jupiter mass planets located at $sim 8$ AU from the star would have enough time to create the gap and the required surface density jump of three orders of magnitude between the inner and outer disk. However, no information on the amount of matter left in the gap is available, which precludes us from setting precise limits on the planet mass, for now.
Accretion is a fundamental process in star formation. Although the time evolution of accretion remains a matter of debate, observations and modelling studies suggest that episodic outbursts of strong accretion may dominate the formation of the protos
tar. Observing young stellar objects during these elevated accretion states is crucial to understanding the origin of unsteady accretion. ZCMa is a pre-main-sequence binary system composed of an embedded Herbig Be star, undergoing photometric outbursts, and a FU Orionis star. The Herbig Be component recently underwent its largest optical photometric outburst detected so far. We aim to constrain the origin of this outburst by studying the emission region of the HI Brackett gamma line, a powerful tracer of accretion/ejection processes on the AU-scale in young stars. Using the AMBER/VLTI instrument at spectral resolutions of 1500 and 12 000, we performed spatially and spectrally resolved interferometric observations of the hot gas emitting across the Brackett gamma emission line, during and after the outburst. From the visibilities and differential phases, we derive characteristic sizes for the Brackett gamma emission and spectro-astrometric measurements across the line, with respect to the continuum. We find that the line profile, the astrometric signal, and the visibilities are inconsistent with the signature of either a Keplerian disk or infall of matter. They are, instead, evidence of a bipolar wind, maybe partly seen through a disk hole inside the dust sublimation radius. The disappearance of the Brackett gamma emission line after the outburst suggests that the outburst is related to a period of strong mass loss rather than a change of the extinction along the line of sight. Based on these conclusions, we speculate that the origin of the outburst is an event of enhanced mass accretion, similar to those occuring in EX Ors and FU Ors.
Disclosing the structure of disks surrounding Herbig AeBe stars is important to expand our understanding of the formation and early evolution of stars and planets. We aim at revealing the sub-AU disk structure around the 10 Myr old Herbig Be star HD1
00546 and at investigating the origin of its near and mid-infrared excess. We used AMBER/VLTI observations to resolve the K-band emission and to constrain the location and composition of the hot dust in the innermost disk. Combining AMBER observations with photometric and MIDI/VLTI measurements from the litterature, we revisit the disk geometry using a passive disk model based on 3D radiative transfer. We propose a model that includes a tenuous inner disk made of micron-sized dust grains, a gap, and a massive optically thick outer disk, that successfully reproduces the interferometric data and the SED. We locate the bulk of the K-band emission at ~0.26 AU. Assuming that this emission originates from silicate, we show that micron-sized grains are required to enable the dust to survive at such a distance from the star. As a consequence, more than 40% of the K-band flux is related to scattering, showing that direct thermal emission is not sufficient to explain the near-infrared excess. In the massive outer disk, large grains in the mid-plane are responsible for the mm emission while a surface layer of small grains allows the mid and far infrared excesses to be reproduced. Such vertical structure may be an evidence for sedimentation. The observations are consistent with a model that includes a gap until ~13 AU and a total dust mass of ~0.008 lunar mass inside it. These values together with the derived scale height (~2.5 AU) and temperature (~220 K) at the inner edge of the outer disk (r=13 AU), are consistent with recent CO observations.
We present new long-baseline spectro-interferometric observations of the HerbigAe star HD163296 obtained in the H and K bands with the AMBER instrument at VLTI. The observations cover a range of spatial resolutions between 3 and 12 milli-arcseconds,
with a spectral resolution of ~30. With a total of 1481 visibilities and 432 closure phases, they result in the best (u,v) coverage achieved on a young star so far. The circumstellar material is resolved at the sub-AU spatial scale and closure phase measurements indicate a small but significant deviation from point-symmetry. We discuss the results assuming that the near-infrared excess in HD163296 is dominated by the emission of a circumstellar disk. A successful fit to the spectral energy distribution, near-infrared visibilities and closure phases is found with a model where a dominant contribution to the H and K band emissions arises from an optically thin, smooth and point-symmetric region extending from about 0.1 to 0.45 AU. At the latter distance from the star, silicates condense, the disk becomes optically thick and develops a puffed-up rim, whose skewed emission can account for the non-zero closure phases. We discuss the nature of the inner disk emission and tentatively rule out dense molecular gas as well as optically thin atomic or ionized gas as its possible origin. We propose instead that the inner emission traces the presence of very refractory grains in a partially cleared region, extending at least to 0.5 AU. If so, we may be observing the disk of HD163296 just before it reaches the transition disk phase. However, we note that the nature of the refractory grains or even the possibility for any grain to survive at the very high temperatures we require (~2100-2300 K at 0.1 AU from the star) is unclear and should be investigated further.
The very recent years have seen a promising start in scientific publications making use of images produced by near-infrared long-baseline interferometry. The technique has reached, at last, a technical maturity level that opens new avenues for numero
us astrophysical topics requiring milli-arcsecond model-independent imaging. The Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) is on the path to be equipped with instruments capable to combine between four to six telescopes. In the framework of the VLTI second generation instruments Gravity and VSI, we propose a new beam combining concept using Integrated Optics (IO) technologies with a novel ABCD-like fringe encoding scheme. Our goal is to demonstrate that IO-based combination brings considerable advantages in terms of instrumental design and performance. We therefore aim at giving a full characterization of an IO beam combiner to establish its performances and check its compliance with the specifications of an imaging instrument. Laboratory measurements were made in the H band with a dedicated testbed. We studied the beam combiners through the analysis of throughput, instrumental visibilities, phases and closure phases in wide band as well as with spectral dispersion. Study of the polarization properties is also done. We obtain competitive throughput, high and stable instrumental contrasts, stable but non-zero closure phases which we attribute to internal well calibrable optical path differences. We validate a new static and achromatic phase shifting IO function close to the nominal 90deg value. All these observables show limited chromaticity over the H band range. Our results demonstrate that such ABCD-like beam combiners are particularly well suited to achieve aperture synthesis imaging. This opens the way to extend to all near infrared wavelengths and in particular, the K band.
