Context. It is now generally accepted that the near-infrared excess of Herbig AeBe stars originates in the dust of a circumstellar disk. Aims. The aims of this article are to infer the radial and vertical structure of these disks at scales of order 1 au, and the properties of the dust grains. Methods. The program objects (51 in total) were observed with the H-band (1.6µm) PIONIER/VLTI interferometer. The largest baselines allowed us to resolve (at least partially) structures of a few tenths of an au at typical distances of a few hundred parsecs. Dedicated UBVRIJHK photometric measurements were also obtained. Spectral and 2D geometrical parameters are extracted via fits of a few simple models: ellipsoids and broadened rings with azimuthal modulation. Model bias is mitigated by parallel fits of physical disk models. Sample statistics were evaluated against similar statistics for the physical disk models to infer properties of the sample objects as a group. Results. We find that dust at the inner rim of the disk has a sublimation temperature T sub ≈ 1800K. A ring morphology is confirmed for approximately half the resolved objects; these rings are wide δ r/r ≥ 0.5. A wide ring favors a rim that, on the star-facing side, looks more like a knife edge than a doughnut. The data are also compatible with a the combination of a narrow ring and an inner disk of unspecified nature inside the dust sublimation radius. The disk inner part has a thickness z/r ≈ 0.2, flaring to z/r ≈ 0.5 in the outer part. We confirm the known luminosity-radius relation; a simple physical model is consistent with both the mean luminosity-radius relation and the ring relative width; however, a significant spread around the mean relation is present. In some of the objects we find a halo component, fully resolved at the shortest interferometer spacing, that is related to the HAeBe class.

Context. PIONIER stands for PrecisionAims. In this paper, we explain the instrumental concept and describe the standard operational modes and the data reduction strategy. We present the typical performance and discuss how to improve them. Methods. This paper is based on laboratory data obtained during the integrations at IPAG, as well as on-sky data gathered during the commissioning at VLTI. We illustrate the imaging capability of PIONIER on the binaries δ Sco and HIP11231. Results. PIONIER provides six visibilities and three independent closure phases in the H band, either in a broadband mode or with a low spectral dispersion (R = 40), using natural light (i.e. unpolarized). The limiting magnitude is Hmag = 7 in dispersed mode under median atmospheric conditions (seeing <1 , τ 0 > 3 ms) with the 1.8 m Auxiliary Telescopes. We demonstrate a precision of 0.5 deg on the closure phases. The precision on the calibrated visibilities ranges from 3% to 15% depending on the atmospheric conditions. Conclusions. PIONIER was installed and successfully tested as a visitor instrument for the VLTI. It permits high angular resolution imaging studies at an unprecedented level of sensitivity. The successful combination of the four 8 m Unit Telescopes in March 2011 demonstrates that VLTI is ready for four-telescope operation.

Aims. We present the first near-IR milli-arcsecond-scale image of a post-AGB binary that is surrounded by hot circumbinary dust. Methods. A very rich interferometric data set in six spectral channels was acquired of IRAS 08544-4431 with the new RAPID camera on the PIONIER beam combiner at the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). A broadband image in the H-band was reconstructed by combining the data of all spectral channels using the SPARCO method. Results. We spatially separate all the building blocks of the IRAS 08544-4431 system in our milliarcsecond-resolution image. Our dissection reveals a dust sublimation front that is strikingly similar to that expected in early-stage protoplanetary disks, as well as an unexpected flux signal of ∼4% from the secondary star. The energy output from this companion indicates the presence of a compact circum-companion accretion disk, which is likely the origin of the fast outflow detected in Hα. Conclusions. Our image provides the most detailed view into the heart of a dusty circumstellar disk to date. Our results demonstrate that binary evolution processes and circumstellar disk evolution can be studied in detail in space and over time.

Context. Post-Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) binaries are surrounded by stable dusty and gaseous disks similar to the ones around young stellar objects. Whereas significant effort is spent on modeling observations of disks around young stellar objects, the disks around post-AGB binaries receive significantly less attention, even though they pose significant constraints on theories of disk physics and binary evolution. Aims. We want to examine the structure of and phenomena at play in circumbinary disks around post-AGB stars. We continue the analysis of our near-infrared interferometric image of the inner rim of the circumbinary disk around IRAS08544-4431. We want to understand the physics governing this inner disk rim. Methods. We use a radiative transfer model of a dusty disk to reproduce simultaneously the photometry as well as the near-infrared interferometric dataset on IRAS08544-4431. The model assumes hydrostatic equilibrium and takes dust settling self-consistently into account.Results. The best-fit radiative transfer model shows excellent agreement with the spectral energy distribution up to mm wavelengths as well as with the PIONIER visibility data. It requires a rounded inner rim structure, starting at a radius of 8.25 au. However, the model does not fully reproduce the detected over-resolved flux nor the azimuthal flux distribution of the inner rim. While the asymmetric inner disk rim structure is likely to be the consequence of disk-binary interactions, the origin of the additional over-resolved flux remains unclear. Conclusions. As in young stellar objects, the disk inner rim of IRAS08544-4431 is ruled by dust sublimation physics. Additional observations are needed to understand the origin of the extended flux and the azimuthal perturbation at the inner rim of the disk.

Aims. We aim at resolving the circumstellar environment around β Pic in the near-infrared in order to study the inner planetary system (<200 mas, i.e., ∼4 AU). Methods. Precise interferometric fringe visibility measurements were obtained over seven spectral channels dispersed across the H band with the four-telescope VLTI/PIONIER interferometer. Thorough analysis of interferometric data was performed to measure the stellar angular diameter and to search for circumstellar material. Results. We detected near-infrared circumstellar emission around β Pic that accounts for 1.37% ± 0.16% of the near-infrared stellar flux and that is located within the field-of-view of PIONIER (i.e., ∼200 mas in radius). The flux ratio between this excess and the photosphere emission is shown to be stable over a period of 1 year and to vary only weakly across the H band, suggesting that the source is either very hot ( 1500 K) or dominated by the scattering of the stellar flux. In addition, we derive the limb-darkened angular diameter of β Pic with an unprecedented accuracy (θ LD = 0.736 ± 0.019 mas). Conclusions. The presence of a small H-band excess originating in the vicinity of β Pic is revealed for the first time thanks to the high-precision visibilities enabled by VLTI/PIONIER. This excess emission is likely due to the scattering of stellar light by circumstellar dust and/or the thermal emission from a yet unknown population of hot dust, although hot gas emitting in the continuum cannot be firmly excluded.

Context. Post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) binaries are surrounded by massive disks of gas and dust that are similar to the protoplanetary disks that are known to surround young stars. Aims. We assembled a catalog of all known Galactic post-AGB binaries featuring disks. We explore the correlations between the different observables with the aim of learning more about potential disk-binary interactions. Methods. We compiled spectral energy distributions of 85 Galactic post-AGB binary systems. We built a color-color diagram to differentiate between the different disk morphologies traced by the characteristics of the infrared excess. We categorized the different disk types and searched for correlations with other observational characteristics of these systems. Results. Between 8 and 12% of our targets are surrounded by transition disks, that is, disks having no or low near-infrared excess. We find a strong link between these transition disks and the depletion of refractory elements seen on the surface of the post-AGB star. We interpret this correlation as evidence of the presence of a mechanism that stimulates the dust and gas separation within the disk and that also produces the transition disk structure. We propose that such a mechanism is likely to be due to a giant planet carving a hole in the disk, effectively trapping the dust in the outer disk parts. We propose two disk evolutionary scenarios, depending on the actual presence of such a giant planet in the disk. Conclusions. We advocate that giant planets can successfully explain the correlation between the transition disks and the depletion of refractory materials observed in post-AGB binaries. If the planetary scenario is confirmed, disks around post-AGB binaries could be a unique laboratory for testing planet-disk interactions and their influence on the late evolution of binary stars. The question of whether such planets are first- or second-generation bodies also remains to be considered. We argue that these disks are ideal for studying planet formation scenarios in an unprecedented parameter space.

Context. The innermost astronomical unit (au) in protoplanetary disks is a key region for stellar and planet formation, as exoplanet searches have shown a large occurrence of close-in planets that are located within the first au around their host star. Aims. We aim to reveal the morphology of the disk inner rim using near-infrared interferometric observations with milli-arcsecond resolution provided by near-infrared multitelescope interferometry. Methods. We provide model-independent reconstructed images of 15 objects selected from the Herbig AeBe survey carried out with PIONIER at the Very Large Telescope Interferometer, using the semi-parametric approach for image reconstruction of chromatic objects. We propose a set of methods to reconstruct and analyze the images in a consistent way. Results. We find that 40% of the systems (6/15) are centrosymmetric at the angular resolution of the observations. For the rest of the objects, we find evidence for asymmetric emission due to moderate-to-strong inclination of a disk-like structure for ~30% of the objects (5/15) and noncentrosymmetric morphology due to a nonaxisymmetric and possibly variable environment (4/15, ~27%). Among the systems with a disk-like structure, 20% (3/15) show a resolved dust-free cavity. Finally, we do not detect extended emission beyond the inner rim. Conclusions. The image reconstruction process is a powerful tool to reveal complex disk inner rim morphologies, which is complementary to the fit of geometrical models. At the angular resolution reached by near-infrared interferometric observations, most of the images are compatible with a centrally peaked emission (no cavity). For the most resolved targets, image reconstruction reveals morphologies that cannot be reproduced by generic parametric models (e.g., perturbed inner rims or complex brightness distributions). Moreover, the nonaxisymmetric disks show that the spatial resolution probed by optical interferometers makes the observations of the near-infrared emission (inside a few au) sensitive to temporal evolution with a time-scale down to a few weeks. The evidence of nonaxisymmetric emission that cannot be explained by simple inclination and radiative transfer effects requires alternative explanations, such as a warping of the inner disks. Interferometric observations can therefore be used to follow the evolution of the asymmetry of those disks at an au or sub-au scale.

Context. Post-AGB binaries are surrounded by circumbinary disks of gas and dust that are similar to protoplanetary disks found around young stars. Aims. We aim to understand the structure of these disks and identify the physical phenomena at play in their very inner regions. We want to understand the disk-binary interaction and to further investigate the comparison with protoplanetary disks. Methods. We have conducted an interferometric snapshot survey of 23 post-AGB binaries in the near-infrared (H-band) using VLTI/PIONIER. We have fitted the multiwavelength visibilities and closure phases with purely geometrical models with an increasing complexity (including two point-sources, an azimuthally modulated ring and an over-resolved flux) in order to retrieve the sizes, temperatures and flux ratios of the different components.Results. All sources are resolved and the different components contributing to the H-band flux are dissected. The environment of these targets is very complex: 13/23 targets need models with thirteen or more parameters to fit the data. We find that the inner disk rims follow and extend the size-luminosity relation established for disks around young stars with an offset toward larger sizes. The measured temperature of the near-infrared circumstellar emission of post-AGB binaries is lower (T sub ∼1200 K) than for young stars, probably due to a different dust mineralogy and/or gas density in the dust sublimation region. Conclusions. The dusty inner rims of the circumbinary disks around post-AGB binaries are ruled by dust sublimation physics. Additionally a significant amount of the circumstellar H-band flux is over-resolved (14 targets have more than 10% of their non-stellar flux over-resolved) hinting for more structure from a yet unknown origin (disk structure or outflow). The amount of over-resolved flux is larger than around young stars. Due to the complexity of these targets, interferometric imaging is a necessary tool to reveal the interacting inner regions in a model-independent way.