A Chemical Mismatch Between Young Stars and Their Inner Disks
Abstract
We present the first stellar elemental abundance study for two very low-mass stars, similar in mass to TRAPPIST-1, in the \,Myr-old Upper-Sco association. Their mid-infrared JWST/MIRI spectra, like those of many very low-mass stars, are hydrocarbon-rich, indicating C/O ratios greater than unity in the inner disk gas inside their snowlines. By fitting synthetic spectra to high-resolution APOGEE near-infrared stellar spectra, we show that, unlike their inner disks, both stars have solar C/O ratios. Their Fe, C, O, Mg, and Ca abundances are likewise consistent with solar values, placing them within the Galactic thin-disk population, as expected for nearby star-forming regions. This contrast between stellar and inner disk C/O ratios provides the first direct evidence that the inner disk's supersolar values are not inherited from the natal cloud but arise from disk processes. If these enhanced C/O ratios are primarily driven by inward drift of icy pebbles, there are major implications for disk evolution and planet formation, which we also discuss.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2604.05221,
title = {A Chemical Mismatch Between Young Stars and Their Inner Disks},
author = {Diogo Souto and Ilaria Pascucci and Katia Cunha and Shubham Kanodia},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2604.05221},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
8 Pages, 2 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in ApJL