ASPCS
 
Back to Volume
Paper: Coagulation of Charged Dust in Protoplanetary Disks
Volume: 510, Stars: From Collapse to Collapse
Page: 63
Authors: Akimkin, V.
Abstract: Electrostatic interaction affects collisional cross-section of charged dust grains. Photoelectric and collisional charging are two primary mechanisms driving grains to positive and negative potentials, respectively. By solving the Smoluchowski equation for protoplanetary disk conditions, we show that effective coagulation occurs in a layer at intermediate heights, where these two charging mechanisms compete and both negative and positive grains are present. In dark regions, where the collisional charging dominates and grains are mostly negatively charged, the electrostatic barrier effectively hampers grain growth. Similarly, in an illuminated disk atmosphere, the photoelectric charging retains positively charged population of small grains.
Back to Volume