Aims. Recent observations by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) of disks around young stars revealed distinct asymmetries in the dust continuum emission. In this work we wish to study axisymmetric and non-axisymmetric structures that are generated by the magneto-rotational instability in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks. We combine the results of stateof-the-art numerical simulations with post-processing radiative transfer (RT) to generate synthetic maps and predictions for ALMA. Methods. We performed non-ideal global 3D magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) stratified simulations of the dead-zone outer edge using the FARGO MHD code PLUTO. The stellar and disk parameters were taken from a parameterized disk model applied for fitting highangular resolution multi-wavelength observations of various circumstellar disks. We considered a stellar mass of M * = 0.5 M and a total disk mass of about 0.085 M * . The 2D initial temperature and density profiles were calculated consistently from a given surface density profile and Monte Carlo radiative transfer. The 2D Ohmic resistivity profile was calculated using a dust chemistry model. We considered two values for the dust-to-gas mass ratio, 10 −2 and 10 −4 , which resulted in two different levels of magnetic coupling. The initial magnetic field was a vertical net flux field. The radiative transfer simulations were performed with the Monte Carlo-based 3D continuum RT code MC3D. The resulting dust reemission provided the basis for the simulation of observations with ALMA.Results. All models quickly turned into a turbulent state. The fiducial model with a dust-to-gas mass ratio of 10 −2 developed a large gap followed by a jump in surface density located at the dead-zone outer edge. The jump in density and pressure was strong enough to stop the radial drift of particles at this location. In addition, we observed the generation of vortices by the Rossby wave instability at the jump location close to 60 AU. The vortices were steadily generated and destroyed at a cycle of 40 local orbits. The RT results and simulated ALMA observations predict that it is feasible to observe these large-scale structures that appear in magnetized disks without planets. Neither the turbulent fluctuations in the disk nor specific times of the model can be distinguished on the basis of high-angular resolution submillimeter observations alone. The same applies to the distinction between gaps at the dead-zone edges and planetary gaps, to the distinction between turbulent and simple unperturbed disks, and to the asymmetry created by the vortex.

We present full 2π global 3-D stratified MHD simulations of accretion disks. We interpret our results in the context of proto-planetary disks. We investigate the turbulence driven by the magneto-rotational instability (MRI) using the PLUTO Godunov code in spherical coordinates with the accurate and robust HLLD Riemann solver. We follow the turbulence for more than 1500 orbits at the innermost radius of the domain to measure the overall strength of turbulent motions and the detailed accretion flow pattern.We find that regions within two scale heights of the midplane have a turbulent Mach number of about 0.1 and a magnetic pressure two to three orders of magnitude less than the gas pressure, while outside three scale heights the magnetic pressure equals or exceeds the gas pressure and the turbulence is transonic, leading to large density fluctuations. The strongest large-scale density disturbances are spiral density waves, and the strongest of these waves has m = 5. No clear meridional circulation appears in the calculations because fluctuating radial pressure gradients lead to changes in the orbital frequency, comparable in importance to the stress gradients that drive the meridional flows in viscous models. The net mass flow rate is well-reproduced by a viscous model using the mean stress distribution taken from the MHD calculation.The strength of the mean turbulent magnetic field is inversely proportional to the radius, so the fields are approximately force-free on the largest scales. Consequently the accretion stress falls off as the inverse square of the radius.

Context. The poorly-ionized interior of the protoplanetary disk or "dead zone" is the location where dust coagulation processes may be most efficient. However even here, planetesimal formation may be limited by the loss of solid material through radial drift, and by collisional fragmentation of the particles. Both depend on the turbulent properties of the gas. Aims. Our aim here is to investigate the possibility that solid particles are trapped at local pressure maxima in the dynamically evolving disk. We perform the first 3-D global non-ideal magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) calculations of a section of the disk treating the turbulence driven by the magneto-rotational instability (MRI). Methods. We use the ZeusMP code with a fixed Ohmic resistivity distribution. The domain contains an inner MRI-active region near the young star and an outer midplane dead zone, with the transition between the two modeled by a sharp increase in the magnetic diffusivity.Results. The azimuthal magnetic fields generated in the active zone oscillate over time, changing sign about every 150 years. We thus observe the radial structure of the "butterfly pattern" seen previously in local shearing-box simulations. The mean magnetic field diffuses from the active zone into the dead zone, where the Reynolds stress nevertheless dominates, giving a residual α between 10 −4 and 10 −3 . The greater total accretion stress in the active zone leads to a net reduction in the surface density, so that after 800 years an approximate steady state is reached in which a local radial maximum in the midplane pressure lies near the transition radius. We also observe the formation of density ridges within the active zone. Conclusions. The dead zone in our models possesses a mean magnetic field, significant Reynolds stresses and a steady local pressure maximum at the inner edge, where the outward migration of planetary embryos and the efficient trapping of solid material are possible.

The edges of magnetically-dead zones in protostellar disks have been proposed as locations where density bumps may arise, trapping planetesimals and helping form planets. Magneto-rotational turbulence in magnetically-active zones provides both accretion of gas on the star and transport of mass to the dead zone. We investigate the location of the magnetically-active regions in a protostellar disk around a solar-type star, varying the disk temperature, surface density profile, and dust-to-gas ratio. We also consider stellar masses between 0.4 and 2 M ⊙ , with corresponding adjustments in the disk mass and temperature. The dead zone's size and shape are found using the Elsasser number criterion with conductivities including the contributions from ions, electrons, and charged fractal dust aggregates. The charged species' abundances are found using the approach proposed by Okuzumi. The dead zone is in most cases defined by the ambipolar diffusion. In our maps, the dead zone takes a variety of shapes, including a fish-tail pointing away from the star and islands located on and off the midplane. The corresponding accretion rates vary with radius, indicating locations where the surface density will increase over time, and others where it will decrease. We show that density bumps do not readily grow near the dead zone's outer edge, independently of the disk parameters and the dust properties. Instead, the accretion rate peaks at the radius where the gas-phase metals freeze out. This could lead to clearing a valley in the surface density, and to a trap for pebbles located just outside the metal freeze-out line.