We present illustrative models for the UV to millimetre emission of starburst galaxies which are treated as an ensemble of optically thick giant molecular clouds (GMCs) centrally illuminated by recently formed stars. The models follow the evolution of the GMCs owing to the ionization‐induced expansion of the H ii regions and the evolution of the stellar population within the GMC according to the Bruzual & Charlot stellar population synthesis models. The effect of transiently heated dust grains/PAHs on the radiative transfer, as well as multiple scattering, is taken into account. The expansion of the H ii regions and the formation of a narrow neutral shell naturally explain why the emission from PAHs dominates over that from hot dust in the near‐ to mid‐infrared, an emerging characteristic of the infrared spectra of starburst galaxies. The models allow us to relate the observed properties of a galaxy to its age and star formation history. We find that exponentially decaying 107–108 yr old bursts can explain the IRAS colours of starburst galaxies. The models are also shown to account satisfactorily for the multiwavelength data on the prototypical starburst galaxy M82 and NGC 6090, a starburst galaxy recently observed by ISO. In M82 we find evidence for two bursts separated by 107 yr. In NGC 6090 we find that at least part of the far‐infrared excess may be due to the age of the burst (6.4×107 yr). We also make predictions about the evolution of the luminosity of starbursts at different wavelengths which indicate that far‐infrared surveys may preferentially detect older starbursts than mid‐infrared surveys.

Aims. We provide a library of some 7000 SEDs for the nuclei of starburst and ultra luminous galaxies. Its purpose is to quickly obtain estimates of the basic parameters, such as luminosity, size and dust or gas mass and to predict the flux at yet unobserved wavelengths. The procedure is simple and consists of finding an element in the library that matches the observations. The objects may be in the local universe or at high z. Methods. We calculate the radiative transfer in spherical symmetry for a stellar cluster permeated by an interstellar medium with standard (Milky Way) dust properties. The cluster contains two stellar populations: old bulge stars and OB stars. Because the latter are young, a certain fraction of them will be embedded in compact clouds which constitute hot spots that determine the MIR fluxes. Results. We present SEDs for a broad range of luminosities, sizes and obscurations. We argue that the assumption of spherical symmetry and the neglect of clumpiness of the medium are not severe shortcomings for computing the dust emission. The validity of the approach is demonstrated by matching the SED of seven of the best studied galaxies, including M 82 and Arp 220, by library elements. In all cases, one finds an element which fits the observed SED very well, and the parameters defining the element are in full accord with what is known about the galaxy from detailed studies. We also compare our method of computing SEDs with other techniques described in the literature.

Abstract.We investigate the mid-infrared radiation of galaxies that are powered by a starburst or by an AGN. For this end, we compare the spectra obtained at different spatial scales in a sample of infrared bright galaxies. ISO observations which include emission of the nucleus as well as most of the host galaxy are compared with TIMMI2 spectra of the nuclear region. We find that ISO spectra are generally dominated by strong PAH bands. However, this is no longer true when inspecting the mid-infrared emission of the pure nucleus. Here PAH emission is detected in starbursts whereas it is significantly reduced or completely absent in AGNs. A physical explanation of these new observational results is presented by examining the temperature fluctuation of a PAH after interaction with a photon. It turns out that the hardness of the radiation field is a key parameter for quantifying the photo-destruction of small grains. Our theoretical study predicts PAH evaporation in soft X-ray environments. Radiative transfer calculations of clumpy starbursts and AGN corroborate the observational fact that PAH emission is connected to starburst activity whereas PAHs are destroyed near an AGN. The radiative transfer models predict for starbursts a much larger mid-infrared size than for AGN. This is confirmed by our TIMMI2 acquisition images: We find that the mid-infrared emission of Seyferts is dominated by a compact core while most of the starbursts are spatially resolved.

Abstract. We present photometric ISO 60 and 170 um measurements, complemented by some IRAS data at 60 µm, of a sample of 84 nearby main-sequence stars of spectral class A, F, G and K in order to determine the incidence of dust disks around such main-sequence stars. Fifty stars were detected at 60 µm; 36 of these emit a flux expected from their photosphere while 14 emit significantly more. The excess emission we attribute to a circumstellar disk like the ones around Vega and β Pictoris. Thirty four stars were not detected at all; the expected photospheric flux, however, is so close to the detection limit that the stars cannot have an excess stronger than the photospheric flux density at 60 µm. Of the stars younger than 400 Myr one in two has a disk; for the older stars this is true for only one in ten. We conclude that most stars arrive on the main sequence surrounded by a disk; this disk then decays in about 400 Myr. Because (i) the dust particles disappear and must be replenished on a much shorter time scale and (ii) the collision of planetesimals is a good source of new dust, we suggest that the rapid decay of the disks is caused by the destruction and escape of planetesimals. We suggest that the dissipation of the disk is related to the heavy bombardment phase in our Solar System. Whether all stars arrive on the main sequence surrounded by a disk cannot be established: some very young stars do not have a disk. And not all stars destroy their disk in a similar way: some stars as old as the Sun still have significant disks.

We assume that dust near active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is distributed in a torus-like geometry, which can be described as a clumpy medium or a homogeneous disk, or as a combination of the two (i.e. a two-phase medium). The dust particles considered are fluffy and have higher submillimeter emissivities than grains in the diffuse interstellar medium. The dust-photon interaction is treated in a fully self-consistent three-dimensional radiative transfer code. We provide an AGN library of spectral energy distributions (SEDs). Its purpose is to quickly obtain estimates of the basic parameters of the AGNs, such as the intrinsic luminosity of the central source, the viewing angle, the inner radius, the volume filling factor and optical depth of the clouds, and the optical depth of the disk midplane, and to predict the flux at yet unobserved wavelengths. The procedure is simple and consists of finding an element in the library that matches the observations. We discuss the general properties of the models and in particular the 10 µm silicate band. The AGN library accounts well for the observed scatter of the feature strengths and wavelengths of the peak emission. AGN extinction curves are discussed and we find that there is no direct one-to-one link between the observed extinction and the wavelength dependence of the dust cross sections. We show that objects in the library cover the observed range of mid-infrared colors of known AGNs. The validity of the approach is demonstrated by matching the SEDs of a number of representative objects: Four Seyferts and two quasars for which we present new Herschel photometry, two radio galaxies, and one hyperluminous infrared galaxy. Strikingly, for the five luminous objects we find that pure AGN models fit the SED without needing to postulate starburst activity.