Radial decoupling of small and large dust grains in the transitional disk RX J1615.3-3255

• We present H-band (1.6 mu m) scattered light observations of the transitional disk RX J1615.3-3255, located in the similar to 1 Myr old Lupus association. From a polarized intensity image, taken with the HiCIAO instrument of the Subaru Telescope, we deduce the position angle and the inclination angle of the disk. The disk is found to extend out to 68 +/- 12 AU in scattered light and no clear structure is observed. Our inner working angle of 24 AU does not allow us to detect a central decrease in intensity similar to that seen at 30 AU in the 880 mu m continuum observations. We compare the observations with multiple disk models based on the spectral energy distribution (SED) and submm interferometry and find that an inner rim of the outer disk at 30 AU containing small silicate grains produces a polarized intensity signal which is an order of magnitude larger than observed. We show that a model in which the small dust grains extend smoothly into the cavity found for large grains is closer to the actual H-band observations. A comparison of models with di ff erent dust size distributions suggests that the dust in the disk might have undergone significant processing compared to the interstellar medium.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik -- Astronomi, astrofysik och kosmologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences -- Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

circumstellar matter

planet-disk interactions

planets and satellites: formation

protoplanetary disks

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)