Related papers: Nonlinear Criterion for the Stability of Molecular…
We study the linear evolution of small perturbations in self-gravitating fluid systems in two spatial dimensions; we consider both cylindrical and cartesian (i.e., slab) geometries. The treatment is general, but the application is to…
The focusing cubic nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation in two dimensions admits vortex solitons, standing wave solutions with spatial structure, Qm(r,theta) = e^{i m theta} Rm(r). In the case of spin m = 1, we prove there exists a class of…
We find the collapse of columns of granular rods to show range of behaviors that depends on particle aspect ratio (length $L$ to diameter $d$) and initial pile geometry (height/radius). For all aspect ratios $L/d$ below 24 there exists a…
This review summarizes the argument for molecular clouds being dominated by turbulence, most likely super-Alfvenic turbulence. Five lines of observational evidence are given: molecular linewidths and line shapes, nonequilibrium chemical…
Magnetic fields are usually considered dynamically important in star formation when the dimensionless mass-to-flux ratio is close to, or less than, unity (lambda<~1). We show that, in disk formation, the requirement is far less stringent.…
We perform fully general relativistic simulations of rotating stellar core collapse in three spatial dimension. A parametric equation of state is adopted following Dimmelmeier et al. The early stage of the collapse is followed by an…
This is the first paper about the fragmentation and mass outflow in the molecular cloud by using three-dimensional MHD nested-grid simulations. The binary star formation process is studied paying particular attention to the fragmentation of…
In order to develop a complete theory of star formation, one essentially needs to know two things: what collapses, and how long it takes. This is the second paper in a series, where we query how long a parcel of gas takes to collapse and…
We investigate numerically the critical behaviour which occurs in the collapse of both spherically symmetric and asymmetric scalar field bubbles with full general relativity. We use a minimally coupled scalar field subject to a "double…
We utilize magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations to develop a numerical model for GMC-GMC collisions between nearly magnetically critical clouds. The goal is to determine if, and under what circumstances, cloud collisions can cause…
The fragmentation process in collapsing clouds with various metallicities is studied using three-dimensional nested-grid hydrodynamics. Initial clouds are specified by three parameters: cloud metallicity, initial rotation energy and initial…
We present measurements of the mean dense core lifetimes in numerical simulations of magnetically supercritical, turbulent, isothermal molecular clouds, in order to compare with observational determinations. "Prestellar" lifetimes (given as…
The dense molecular cloud cores that form stars, like other self-gravitating objects, undergo bulk oscillations. Just at the point of gravitational instability, their fundamental oscillation mode has zero frequency. We study, using…
We present results from an extensive set of simulations of gravitational fragmentation in the presence of magnetic fields and ambipolar diffusion. The average fragmentation spacing in the nonlinear phase of evolution is in excellent…
We model molecular cloud fragmentation with thin disk non-ideal magnetohydrodynamic simulations that include ambipolar diffusion and partial ionization that transitions from primarily ultraviolet dominated to cosmic ray dominated regimes.…
The onset of stochasticity is measured in $\Lambda$CDM cosmological simulations using a set of classical observables. It is quantified as the local derivative of the logarithm of the dispersion of a given observable (within a set of…
Molecular gas disks are generally Toomre stable ($Q_T>$1) and yet clearly gravitationally unstable to structure formation as evidenced by the existence of molecular clouds and ongoing star formation. This paper adopts a 3D perspective to…
We present an idealized, semi-empirical model for the evolution of gravitationally contracting molecular clouds (MCs) and their star formation rate (SFR) and efficiency (SFE). The model assumes that the instantaneous SFR is given by the…
We study the critical collapse of a massive complex scalar field coupled minimally to gravity. Taking as initial data a simple gaussian pulse with a shape similar to the harmonic ansatz for boson stars, we obtain critical collapse of type…
We develop models for the self-similar collapse of magnetized isothermal cylinders. We find solutions for the case of a fluid with a constant toroidal flux-to-mass ratio (Gamma_phi=constant) and the case of a fluid with a constant gas to…