We present λ 1.3 mm Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy observations of dust polarization toward 30 star-forming cores and eight star-forming regions from the TADPOL survey. We show maps of all sources, and compare the ∼2. 5 resolution TADPOL maps with ∼20 resolution polarization maps from single-dish submillimeter telescopes. Here we do not attempt to interpret the detailed B-field morphology of each object. Rather, we use average B-field orientations to derive conclusions in a statistical sense from the ensemble of sources, bearing in mind that these average orientations can be quite uncertain. We discuss three main findings. (1) A subset of the sources have consistent magnetic field (B-field) orientations between large (∼20 ) and small (∼2. 5) scales. Those same sources also tend to have higher fractional polarizations than the sources with inconsistent large-to-small-scale fields. We interpret this to mean that in at least some cases B-fields play a role in regulating the infall of material all the way down to the ∼1000 AU scales of protostellar envelopes. (2) Outflows appear to be randomly aligned with B-fields; although, in sources with low polarization fractions there is a hint that outflows are preferentially perpendicular to small-scale B-fields, which suggests that in these sources the fields have been wrapped up by envelope rotation. (3) Finally, even at ∼2. 5 resolution we see the so-called polarization hole effect, where the fractional polarization drops significantly near the total intensity peak. All data are publicly available in the electronic edition of this article.

We determine the magnetic field strength in the OMC 1 region of the Orion A filament via a new implementation of the Chandrasekhar-Fermi method using observations performed as part of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) B-Fields In Star-Forming Region Observations (BISTRO) survey with the POL-2 instrument. We combine BISTRO data with archival SCUBA-2 and HARP observations to find a plane-of-sky magnetic field strength in OMC 1 of B pos = 6.6 ± 4.7 mG, where δB pos = 4.7 mG represents a predominantly systematic uncertainty. We develop a new method for measuring angular dispersion, analogous to unsharp masking. We find a magnetic energy density of ∼ 1.7 × 10 −7 J m −3 in OMC 1, comparable both to the gravitational potential energy density of OMC 1 (∼ 10 −7 J m −3 ), and to the energy density in the Orion BN/KL outflow (∼ 10 −7 J m −3 ). We find that neither the Alfvén velocity in OMC 1 nor the velocity of the super-Alfvénic outflow ejecta is sufficiently large for the BN/KL outflow to have caused large-scale distortion of the local magnetic field in the ∼500-year lifetime of the outflow. Hence, we propose that the hour-glass field morphology in OMC 1 is caused by the distortion of a primordial cylindrically-symmetric magnetic field by the gravitational fragmentation of the filament and/or the gravitational interaction of the BN/KL and S clumps. We find that OMC 1 is currently in or near magnetically-supported equilibrium, and that the current large-scale morphology of the BN/KL outflow is regulated by the geometry of the magnetic field in OMC 1, and not vice versa.

Context. The growth of dust grains from sub-µm to mm and cm sizes is the first step towards the formation of planetesimals. Theoretical models of grain growth predict that dust properties change as a function of disk radius, mass, age, and other physical conditions. High angular resolution observations at several (sub-)mm wavelengths constitute the ideal tool with which to directly probe the bulk of dust grains and to investigate the radial distribution of their properties. Aims. We lay down the methodology for a multiwavelength analysis of (sub-)mm and cm continuum interferometric observations to self-consistently constrain the disk structure and the radial variation of the dust properties. The computational architecture is massively parallel and highly modular. Methods. The analysis is based on the simultaneous fit in the uv-plane of observations at several wavelengths with a model for the disk thermal emission and for the dust opacity. The observed flux density at the different wavelengths is fitted by posing constraints on the disk structure and on the radial variation of the grain size distribution. Results. We apply the analysis to observations of three protoplanetary disks (AS 209, FT Tau, DR Tau) for which a combination of spatially resolved observations in the range ∼0.88 mm to ∼10 mm is available from SMA, CARMA, and VLA. In these disks we find evidence of a decrease in the maximum dust grain size, a max , with radius. We derive large a max values up to 1 cm in the inner disk 15 AU ≤ R ≤ 30 AU and smaller grains with a max ∼ 1 mm in the outer disk (R 80 AU). Our analysis of the AS 209 protoplanetary disk confirms previous literature results showing a max decreasing with radius. Conclusions. Theoretical studies of planetary formation through grain growth are plagued by the lack of direct information on the radial distribution of the dust grain size. In this paper we develop a multiwavelength analysis that will allow this missing quantity to be constrained for statistically relevant samples of disks and to investigate possible correlations with disk or stellar parameters.

We present results of λ1.3 mm dust polarization observations toward 16 nearby, low-mass protostars, mapped with ∼2.5 resolution at CARMA. The results show that magnetic fields in protostellar cores on scales of ∼1000 AU are not tightly aligned with outflows from the protostars. Rather, the data are consistent with scenarios where outflows and magnetic fields are preferentially misaligned (perpendicular), or where they are randomly aligned. If one assumes that outflows emerge along the rotation axes of circumstellar disks, and that the outflows have not disrupted the fields in the surrounding material, then our results imply that the disks are not aligned with the fields in the cores from which they formed.

We present dust continuum observations of the protoplanetary disk surrounding the pre-main sequence star AS 209, spanning more than an order of magnitude in wavelength from 0.88 to 9.8 mm. The disk was observed with sub-arcsecond angular resolution (0.2 ′′ − 0.5 ′′ ) to investigate radial variations in its dust properties. At longer wavelengths, the disk emission structure is notably more compact, providing model-independent evidence for changes in the grain properties across the disk. We find that physical models which reproduce the disk emission require a radial dependence of the dust opacity κ ν . Assuming that the observed wavelength-dependent structure can be attributed to radial variations in the dust opacity spectral index (β), we find that β(R) increases from β < 0.5 at ∼ 20 AU to β > 1.5 for R 80 AU, inconsistent with a constant value of β across the disk (at the 10σ level). Furthermore, if radial variations of κ ν are caused by particle growth, we find that the maximum size of the particle-size distribution (a max ) increases from sub-millimeter-sized grains in the outer disk (R 70 AU) to millimeter and centimeter-sized grains in the inner disk regions (R 70 AU). We compare our observational constraint on a max (R) with predictions from physical models of dust evolution in proto-planetary disks. For the dust composition and particle-size distribution investigated here, our observational constraints on a max (R) are consistent with models where the maximum grain size is limited by radial drift.

Gravitational forces are expected to excite spiral density waves in protoplanetary disks, disks of gas and dust orbiting young stars. However, previous observations that showed spiral structure were not able to probe disk midplanes, where most of the mass is concentrated and where planet formation takes place. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array we detected a pair of trailing symmetric spiral arms in the protoplanetary disk surrounding the young star Elias 2-27. The arms extend to the disk outer regions and can be traced down to the midplane. These millimeter-wave observations also reveal an emission gap closer to the star than the spiral arms. We argue that the observed spirals trace shocks of spiral density waves in the midplane of this young disk.Spiral density waves are expected to be excited in the midplane of protoplanetary disks by the action of gravitational forces, generated for example by planet-disk interactions (1) or by gravitational instabilities (2). These waves give rise to spiral structure whose observable characteristics the number and location of arms, their amplitudes and pitch angles depend on the driving mechanism and the disk physical properties (1,3-5). Theoretical predictions agree that these spiral features can be very prominent and thus more easily observable than the putative embedded planets or instabilities driving such waves (6,7). Spiral-like patterns have been observed in evolved protoplanetary disks with depleted inner regions, in optical scattered light (8-13) or gas spectral lines (14,15). However, at the wavelength of such observations the emission is optically thick and scattered light only traces the tenuous surface layers of these disks rather than their midplane densities. This makes it impossible to disentangle between minute perturbations near the disk surface and true density enhancements over the disk column density due to spiral density waves (16,5). To probe the disk density structure, particularly the disk midplane that contains most of the mass and where planets form, observations of optically thin emission are necessary.We used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to observe the protoplanetary disk around the young star Elias 2-27 at a wavelength of 1.3 mm. Our spatially resolved image (Fig. 1) shows two symmetric spiral arms extending from an elliptical emission ring. To emphasize the spirals and the dark ring of attenuated emission seen at ≈ 70 AU radius, we applied an unsharp masking filter (17) to increase significantly the image contrast (Fig. 1B).The young star Elias 2-27 (18) is a member of the ρ-Ophiuchus star-forming complex at a distance of 139 pc (19) and is classified as a Class II young stellar object from analysis of its spectral energy distribution (SED,20,21). Although the star is only 50-60% of the Sun's mass (M ) (20,22) it is known to harbor an unusually massive (0.04-0.14 M , 20,23,24) protoplanetary disk. The star, obscured by 15 magnitudes of extinction at optical wavelengths by the parent molecular clou...

The mechanism for producing polarized emission from protostellar disks at (sub)millimeter wavelengths is currently uncertain. Classically, polarization is expected from non-spherical grains aligned with the magnetic field. Recently, two alternatives have been suggested. One polarization mechanism is caused by self-scattering from dust grains of sizes comparable with the wavelength, while the other mechanism is due to grains aligned with their short axes along the direction of radiation anisotropy. The latter has recently been shown as a likely mechanism for causing the dust polarization detected in HL Tau at 3.1 mm. In this paper, we present ALMA polarization observations of HL Tau for two more wavelengths: 870 μm and 1.3 mm. The morphology at 870 μm matches the expectation for self-scattering, while that at 1.3 mm shows a mix between self-scattering and grains aligned with the radiation anisotropy. The observations cast doubt on the ability of (sub)millimeter continuum polarization to probe disk magnetic fields for at least HL Tau. By showing two distinct polarization morphologies at 870 μm and 3.1 mm and a transition between the two at 1.3 mm, this paper provides definitive evidence that the dominant (sub)millimeter polarization mechanism transitions with wavelength. In addition, if the polarization at 870 μm is due to scattering, the lack of polarization asymmetry along the minor axis of the inclined disk implies that the large grains responsible for the scattering have already settled into a geometrically thin layer, and the presence of asymmetry along the major axis indicates that the HL Tau disk is not completely axisymmetric.

We present results of high-resolution imaging toward HL Tau by the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy (CARMA). We have obtained λ = 1.3 mm and 2.7 mm dust continua with an angular resolution down to 0.13 ′′ . Through model fitting to the two wavelength data simultaneously in Bayesian inference using a flared viscous accretion disk model, we estimate the physical properties of HL Tau, such as density distribution, dust opacity spectral index, disk mass, disk size, inclination angle, position angle, and disk thickness. HL Tau has a circumstellar disk mass of 0.13 M ⊙ , a characteristic radius of 79 AU, an inclination of 40 • , and a position angle of 136 • . Although a thin disk model is preferred by our two wavelength data, a thick disk model is needed to explain the high mid-and far-infrared emission of the HL Tau spectral energy distribution. This could imply large dust grains settled down on the mid plane with fine dust grains mixed with gas. The HL Tau disk is likely gravitationally unstable and can be fragmented between 50 and 100 AU of radius. However, we did not detect dust thermal continuum supporting the protoplanet candidate claimed by a previous study using observations of the Very Large Array at λ = 1.3 cm.