IPhO 2012 · Theory problem 3

Protostar formation

Problem T3. Protostar formation (9 points)

Let us model the formation of a star as follows. A spherical cloud of sparse interstellar gas, initially at rest, starts to collapse due to its own gravity. The initial radius of the ball is \(r_0\) and the mass is \(m\). The temperature of the surroundings (much sparser than the gas) and the initial temperature of the gas is uniformly \(T_0\). The gas may be assumed to be ideal. The average molar mass of the gas is \(\mu\) and its adiabatic index is \(\gamma>\frac{4}{3}\). Assume that \(G\frac{m\mu}{r_0}\gg RT_0\), where \(R\) is the gas constant and \(G\) is the gravitational constant.

i. (0.8 pts) During much of the collapse, the gas is so transparent that any heat generated is immediately radiated away, i.e. the ball stays in thermodynamic equilibrium with its surroundings. What is the number of times, \(n\), by which the pressure increases when the radius is halved to \(r_1=0.5r_0\)? Assume that the gas density remains uniform.

ii. (1 pt) Estimate the time \(t_2\) needed for the radius to shrink from \(r_0\) to \(r_2=0.95r_0\). Neglect the change of the gravity field at the position of a falling gas particle.

iii. (2.5 pts) Assuming that the pressure remains negligible, find the time \(t_{r\to0}\) needed for the ball to collapse from \(r_0\) down to a much smaller radius, using Kepler’s Laws.

iv. (1.7 pts) At some radius \(r_3\ll r_0\), the gas becomes dense enough to be opaque to the heat radiation. Calculate the amount of heat \(Q\) radiated away during the collapse from the radius \(r_0\) down to \(r_3\).

v. (1 pt) For radii smaller than \(r_3\) you may neglect heat loss due to radiation. Determine how the temperature \(T\) of the ball depends on its radius for \(r<r_3\).

vi. (2 pts) Eventually we cannot neglect the effect of the pressure on the dynamics of the gas and the collapse stops at \(r=r_4\) (with \(r_4\ll r_3\)). However, the radiation loss can still be neglected and the temperature is not yet high enough to ignite nuclear fusion. The pressure of such a protostar is not uniform anymore, but rough estimates with inaccurate numerical prefactors can still be done. Estimate the final radius \(r_4\) and the respective temperature \(T_4\).

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • i. \[ \boxed{n=8.} \]

  • ii. \[ \boxed{t_2\simeq\sqrt{\frac{0.10\,r_0^3}{Gm}} \simeq0.32\sqrt{\frac{r_0^3}{Gm}}.} \]

  • iii. \[ \boxed{t_{r\to0}=\frac{\pi}{2\sqrt2}\sqrt{\frac{r_0^3}{Gm}} \simeq1.11\sqrt{\frac{r_0^3}{Gm}}.} \]

  • iv. \[ \boxed{Q=\frac{3mRT_0}{\mu}\ln\!\left(\frac{r_0}{r_3}\right).} \]

  • v. \[ \boxed{T(r)=T_0\left(\frac{r_3}{r}\right)^{3(\gamma-1)}.} \]

  • vi. Suppressing numerical factors in the energy balance, the estimates are \[ \boxed{ r_4\sim r_3 \left(\frac{RT_0r_3}{Gm\mu}\right)^{1/(3\gamma-4)} } \] and \[ \boxed{ T_4\sim T_0 \left(\frac{Gm\mu}{RT_0r_3}\right)^{3(\gamma-1)/(3\gamma-4)}. } \] An expression retaining the heat-capacity factor and an approximate gravitational structure factor is derived below.

Solution

Let the amount of gas be \(N=m/\mu\) moles. Its volume and ideal-gas pressure are \[ V=\frac{4\pi r^3}{3}, \qquad pV=NRT. \] The given inequality means that the initial gravitational energy scale greatly exceeds the thermal energy scale, justifying neglect of pressure during the early collapse.

i. Pressure increase during isothermal contraction

Thermodynamic equilibrium with the surroundings keeps the temperature at \(T_0\). Thus \[ p=\frac{NRT_0}{V}\propto r^{-3}. \] Consequently, \[ n=\frac{p_1}{p_0} =\left(\frac{r_0}{r_1}\right)^3 =\left(\frac{1}{0.5}\right)^3 =\boxed{8}. \]

ii. Time for the first five per cent decrease in radius

By the shell theorem, a particle at the surface initially experiences the inward gravitational acceleration \[ g_0=\frac{Gm}{r_0^2}. \] Keeping this acceleration constant, as instructed, and using the initial condition of rest, \[ r_0-r_2=\frac12g_0t_2^2. \] Since \(r_0-r_2=0.05r_0\), \[ \boxed{ t_2\simeq\sqrt{\frac{2(0.05r_0)}{Gm/r_0^2}} =\sqrt{\frac{0.10r_0^3}{Gm}}. } \]

iii. Collapse time from Kepler’s laws

A surface particle moves under the gravitational field of the enclosed mass \(m\): \[ \ddot r=-\frac{Gm}{r^2}. \]

Regard its radial fall as the limit of a very eccentric bound Kepler orbit. The apocentre is \(r_0\), while the pericentre tends to zero, so the semimajor axis tends to \[ a=\frac{r_0}{2}. \] Kepler’s third law gives the orbital period \[ P=2\pi\sqrt{\frac{a^3}{Gm}}. \] The journey from apocentre to pericentre takes half a period. Therefore, \[ \boxed{ t_{r\to0}=\frac{P}{2} =\pi\sqrt{\frac{(r_0/2)^3}{Gm}} =\frac{\pi}{2\sqrt2}\sqrt{\frac{r_0^3}{Gm}}. } \]

For an initially uniform cloud, this is also the collapse time of every interior shell. Indeed, a shell initially at radius \(s_0\) encloses \[ M(s_0)=m\left(\frac{s_0}{r_0}\right)^3, \] so its collapse time is \[ \frac{\pi}{2\sqrt2}\sqrt{\frac{s_0^3}{GM(s_0)}} =\frac{\pi}{2\sqrt2}\sqrt{\frac{r_0^3}{Gm}}, \] independent of \(s_0\). This supports the uniform, homologous collapse approximation.

iv. Heat radiated during the transparent stage

The internal energy of an ideal gas depends only on temperature. Since \(T=T_0\), its internal energy remains constant.

Taking \(\delta Q_{\rm out}>0\) for heat leaving the gas, the thermal first law is \[ dU=-p\,dV-\delta Q_{\rm out}. \] Thus, with \(dU=0\), \[ \delta Q_{\rm out}=-p\,dV =-NRT_0\frac{dV}{V}. \] Integrating from \(V_0\) to \(V_3\), \[ Q=NRT_0\ln\!\left(\frac{V_0}{V_3}\right). \] Since \(V\propto r^3\), \[ \boxed{ Q=\frac{3mRT_0}{\mu} \ln\!\left(\frac{r_0}{r_3}\right). } \]

The decrease in gravitational potential energy is not all radiated away: during this rapid collapse, most becomes coherent inward kinetic energy. The radiated heat calculated here is the compression work that would otherwise increase the gas’s internal energy.

v. Temperature during the opaque stage

Once radiation losses become negligible, the compression is adiabatic within the model. For an ideal gas, \[ pV^\gamma=\text{constant}. \] Combining this with \(pV=NRT\) gives \[ TV^{\gamma-1}=\text{constant}. \] At the beginning of this stage, \(r=r_3\) and \(T=T_0\). Hence \[ T(r)V(r)^{\gamma-1} =T_0V_3^{\gamma-1}, \] and therefore \[ \boxed{ T(r)=T_0\left(\frac{V_3}{V(r)}\right)^{\gamma-1} =T_0\left(\frac{r_3}{r}\right)^{3(\gamma-1)}. } \]

vi. Radius and temperature at the arrest of collapse

The molar heat capacity is \[ C_V=\frac{R}{\gamma-1}, \] so the internal energy is \[ U=\frac{mRT}{\mu(\gamma-1)}. \]

Write the final gravitational potential energy as \[ W_4=-\alpha\frac{Gm^2}{r_4}, \] where \(\alpha\) is a dimensionless structure factor of order unity. A uniform sphere has \(\alpha=3/5\); the actual nonuniform protostar need not have precisely this value.

At the arrest of the bulk contraction, its bulk kinetic energy is approximately zero. Conservation of energy gives \[ U_4+W_4=U_0+W_0-Q. \] The right-hand side is small compared with \(Gm^2/r_4\). The initial gravitational energy is smaller by a factor of order \(r_4/r_0\). The radiated energy is already small compared with \(Gm^2/r_3\), since \[ \frac{Q}{Gm^2/r_3} = 3\frac{RT_0r_0}{Gm\mu} \frac{r_3}{r_0} \ln\!\left(\frac{r_0}{r_3}\right) \ll1. \] Thus, to the requested accuracy, \[ U_4\simeq |W_4|, \] or \[ \frac{mRT_4}{\mu(\gamma-1)} \simeq\alpha\frac{Gm^2}{r_4}. \] Equivalently, \[ T_4\simeq \frac{\alpha(\gamma-1)Gm\mu}{Rr_4}. \]

Combining this with the adiabatic temperature law, \[ T_0\left(\frac{r_3}{r_4}\right)^{3(\gamma-1)} \simeq \frac{\alpha(\gamma-1)Gm\mu}{Rr_4}, \] yields \[ \left(\frac{r_3}{r_4}\right)^{3\gamma-4} \simeq \frac{\alpha(\gamma-1)Gm\mu}{RT_0r_3}. \] Therefore, retaining these factors, \[ \boxed{ r_4\simeq r_3 \left[ \frac{RT_0r_3}{\alpha(\gamma-1)Gm\mu} \right]^{1/(3\gamma-4)} } \] and \[ \boxed{ T_4\simeq T_0 \left[ \frac{\alpha(\gamma-1)Gm\mu}{RT_0r_3} \right]^{3(\gamma-1)/(3\gamma-4)}. } \] Taking \(\alpha=3/5\) supplies one concrete rough estimate; suppressing the numerical factors gives the scaling expressions in Answers.

Finally, \[ U\propto r^{-3(\gamma-1)}, \qquad |W|\propto r^{-1}. \] Because \(\gamma>4/3\), the internal energy grows faster during contraction than the magnitude of the gravitational energy. This allows the collapse to be arrested. Also, \[ \frac{Gm\mu}{RT_0r_3}\gg1, \] so the estimates give \(r_4\ll r_3\) and \(T_4\gg T_0\), consistently with the assumptions.

The solution was checked against the official solution.