Astronomy & Astrophysics manuscript no.

aa c
ESO 2018
June 10, 2018

Hydrodynamics of giant planet formation

I. Overviewing the κ-mechanism
G. Wuchterl1 and C. Ptolemy2,?

1
Institute for Astronomy (IfA), University of Vienna, Türkenschanzstrasse 17, A-1180 Vienna
e-mail: wuchterl@amok.ast.univie.ac.at
2
University of Alexandria, Department of Geography, ...
e-mail: c.ptolemy@hipparch.uheaven.space ??

Received September 15, 1996; accepted March 16, 1997

ABSTRACT

Context. To investigate the physical nature of the ‘nucleated instability’ of proto giant planets, the stability of layers in static, radiative
gas spheres is analysed on the basis of Baker’s standard one-zone model.
Aims. It is shown that stability depends only upon the equations of state, the opacities and the local thermodynamic state in the
layer. Stability and instability can therefore be expressed in the form of stability equations of state which are universal for a given
composition.
Methods. The stability equations of state are calculated for solar composition and are displayed in the domain −14 ≤ lg ρ/[g cm−3 ] ≤
0, 8.8 ≤ lg e/[erg g−1 ] ≤ 17.7. These displays may be used to determine the one-zone stability of layers in stellar or planetary
structure models by directly reading off the value of the stability equations for the thermodynamic state of these layers, specified by
state quantities as density ρ, temperature T or specific internal energy e. Regions of instability in the (ρ, e)-plane are described and
related to the underlying microphysical processes.
Results. Vibrational instability is found to be a common phenomenon at temperatures lower than the second He ionisation zone. The
κ-mechanism is widespread under ‘cool’ conditions.
Key words. giant planet formation – κ-mechanism – stability of gas spheres

1. Introduction 2. Baker’s standard one-zone model

In the nucleated instability (also called core instability) hypoth- In this section the one-zone model of Baker ((1966)), origi-
esis of giant planet formation, a critical mass for static core nally used to study the Cepheïd pulsation mechanism, will be
envelope protoplanets has been found. Mizuno ((1980)) deter- briefly reviewed. The resulting stability criteria will be rewritten
mined the critical mass of the core to be about 12 M⊕ (M⊕ = in terms of local state variables, local timescales and constitutive
5.975 × 1027 g is the Earth mass), which is independent of the relations.
outer boundary conditions and therefore independent of the lo- Baker ((1966)) investigates the stability of thin layers in self-
cation in the solar nebula. This critical value for the core mass gravitating, spherical gas clouds with the following properties:
corresponds closely to the cores of today’s giant planets.
– hydrostatic equilibrium,
Although no hydrodynamical study has been available many – thermal equilibrium,
workers conjectured that a collapse or rapid contraction will en- – energy transport by grey radiation diffusion.
sue after accumulating the critical mass. The main motivation
for this article is to investigate the stability of the static envelope For the one-zone-model Baker obtains necessary conditions for
at the critical mass. With this aim the local, linear stability of dynamical, secular and vibrational (or pulsational) stability (Eqs.
static radiative gas spheres is investigated on the basis of Baker’s (34a, b, c) in Baker (1966)). Using Baker’s notation:
((1966)) standard one-zone model.
Mr mass internal to the radius r
Phenomena similar to the ones described above for giant
m mass of the zone
planet formation have been found in hydrodynamical mod-
r0 unperturbed zone radius
els concerning star formation where protostellar cores explode
ρ0 unperturbed density in the zone
(Tscharnuter (1987), Balluch (1988)), whereas earlier studies
T0 unperturbed temperature in the zone
found quasi-steady collapse flows. The similarities in the (mi-
Lr0 unperturbed luminosity
cro)physics, i.e., constitutive relations of protostellar cores and
Eth thermal energy of the zone
protogiant planets serve as a further motivation for this study.
and with the definitions of the local cooling time (see Fig. 1)
? Eth
Just to show the usage of the elements in the author field
??
The university of heaven temporarily does not accept e-mails τco = , (1)
Lr0
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 A&A proofs: manuscript no. aa

Fig. 1. Adiabatic exponent Γ1 . Γ1 is plotted as a function of lg internal energy [erg g−1 ] and lg density [g cm−3 ].

and the local free-fall time Table 1. Opacity sources.

s
3π 4πr03
τff = , (2)
32G 3Mr Source T/[K]

Baker’s K and σ0 have the following form: Yorke 1979, Yorke 1980a ≤ 1700a
Krügel 1971 1700 ≤ T ≤ 5000
π 1 Cox & Stewart 1969 5000 ≤
σ0 = √ (3)
8 τff
√
32 1 τff
K = ; (4)
π δ τco composition) the one-zone stability can be inferred if the ther-
where Eth ≈ m(P0 /ρ0 ) has been used and modynamic state is specified. The zone – or in other words the
layer – will be stable or unstable in whatever object it is imbed-
δ = − ∂∂ lnln Tρ ded as long as it satisfies the one-zone-model assumptions. Only
 
P (5) the specific growth rates (depending upon the time scales) will
e = mc2 be different for layers in different objects.
is a thermodynamical quantity which is of order 1 and equal to 1 We will now write down the sign (and therefore stability)
for nonreacting mixtures of classical perfect gases. The physical determining parts of the left-hand sides of the inequalities (6),
meaning of σ0 and K is clearly visible in the equations above. (7) and (8) and thereby obtain stability equations of state.
σ0 represents a frequency of the order one per free-fall time. The sign determining part of inequality (6) is 3Γ1 − 4 and it
K is proportional to the ratio of the free-fall time and the cool- reduces to the criterion for dynamical stability
ing time. Substituting into Baker’s criteria, using thermodynamic
4
identities and definitions of thermodynamic quantities, Γ1 > · (9)
3
∂ ln P ∂ ln P ∂ ln κ
! ! !
Γ1 = , χρ = , κP = Stability of the thermodynamical equilibrium demands
∂ ln ρ S ∂ ln ρ T ∂ ln P T

∂ ln T
!
∂ ln P
!
∂ ln κ
! χρ > 0, cv > 0 , (10)
∇ad = , χT = , κT =
∂ ln P S ∂ ln T ρ ∂ ln T T and
one obtains, after some pages of algebra, the conditions for sta-
bility given below: χT > 0 (11)

π2 1 holds for a wide range of physical situations. With

(3Γ1 − 4) > 0 (6)
8 τ2ff P χT
Γ3 − 1 = > 0 (12)
π2 1 − 3/4χρ ρT cv
" #
Γ1 ∇ad (κT − 4) + κP + 1 > 0 (7)
τco τ2ff χT Γ1 = χρ + χT (Γ3 − 1) > 0 (13)
π2 3 Γ3 − 1
" #
4 ∇ad = >
Γ2
∇ 4∇ − (∇ κ + κ ) − > 0 (8) 0 (14)
4 τco τ2ff 1
ad ad ad T P
3Γ1 Γ1

For a physical discussion of the stability criteria see Baker we find the sign determining terms in inequalities (7) and (8)
((1966)) or Cox ((1980)). respectively and obtain the following form of the criteria for dy-
We observe that these criteria for dynamical, secular and vi- namical, secular and vibrational stability, respectively:
brational stability, respectively, can be factorized into
3Γ1 − 4 =: S dyn > 0 (15)
1. a factor containing local timescales only, 1 − 3/4χρ
2. a factor containing only constitutive relations and their (κT − 4) + κP + 1 =: S sec > 0 (16)
χT
derivatives.
4
The first factors, depending on only timescales, are positive by 4∇ad − (∇ad κT + κP ) − =: S vib > 0. (17)
3Γ1
definition. The signs of the left hand sides of the inequalities (6),
(7) and (8) therefore depend exclusively on the second factors The constitutive relations are to be evaluated for the unperturbed
containing the constitutive relations. Since they depend only on thermodynamic state (say (ρ0 , T 0 )) of the zone. We see that the
state variables, the stability criteria themselves are functions of one-zone stability of the layer depends only on the constitu-
the thermodynamic state in the local zone. The one-zone stabil- tive relations Γ1 , ∇ad , χT , χρ , κP , κT . These depend only on the
ity can therefore be determined from a simple equation of state, unperturbed thermodynamical state of the layer. Therefore the
given for example, as a function of density and temperature. above relations define the one-zone-stability equations of state
Once the microphysics, i.e. the thermodynamics and opacities S dyn , S sec and S vib . See Fig. 2 for a picture of S vib . Regions of
(see Table 1), are specified (in practice by specifying a chemical secular instability are listed in Table 1.
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 G. Wuchterl and C. Ptolemy: Hydrodynamics of giant planet formation

Fig. 2. Vibrational stability equation of state S vib (lg e, lg ρ). > 0 means
vibrational stability.

3. Conclusions
1. The conditions for the stability of static, radiative layers in
gas spheres, as described by Baker’s ((1966)) standard one-
zone model, can be expressed as stability equations of state.
These stability equations of state depend only on the local
thermodynamic state of the layer.
2. If the constitutive relations – equations of state and Rosse-
land mean opacities – are specified, the stability equations
of state can be evaluated without specifying properties of the
layer.
3. For solar composition gas the κ-mechanism is working in the
regions of the ice and dust features in the opacities, the H2
dissociation and the combined H, first He ionization zone,
as indicated by vibrational instability. These regions of in-
stability are much larger in extent and degree of instability
than the second He ionization zone that drives the Cepheïd
pulsations.
Acknowledgements. Part of this work was supported by the German Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG project number Ts 17/2–1.

References
[1966] Baker, N. 1966, in Stellar Evolution, ed. R. F. Stein,& A. G. W. Cameron
(Plenum, New York) 333
[1988] Balluch, M. 1988, A&A, 200, 58
[1980] Cox, J. P. 1980, Theory of Stellar Pulsation (Princeton University Press,
Princeton) 165
[1969] Cox, A. N.,& Stewart, J. N. 1969, Academia Nauk, Scientific Information
15, 1
[1980] Mizuno H. 1980, Prog. Theor. Phys., 64, 544
[1987] Tscharnuter W. M. 1987, A&A, 188, 55
[1992] Terlevich, R. 1992, in ASP Conf. Ser. 31, Relationships between Active
Galactic Nuclei and Starburst Galaxies, ed. A. V. Filippenko, 13
[1980a] Yorke, H. W. 1980a, A&A, 86, 286
[1997] Zheng, W., Davidsen, A. F., Tytler, D. & Kriss, G. A. 1997, preprint

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