Low‐Temperature Opacities
Open accessAbstract
Previous computations of low-temperature Rosseland and Planck mean opacities from Alexander & Ferguson are updated and expanded. The new computations include a more complete equation of state (EOS) with more grain species and updated optical constants. Grains are now explicitly included in thermal equilibrium in the EOS calculation, which allows for a much wider range of grain compositions to be accurately included than was previously the case. The inclusion of high-temperature condensates such as Al 2 O 3 and CaTiO 3 significantly affects the total opacity over a narrow range of temperatures before the appearance of the first silicate grains. The new opacity tables are tabulated for temperatures ranging from 30,000 to 500 K with gas densities from 10 -4 to 10 -19 g cm -3 . Comparisons with previous Rosseland mean opacity calculations are discussed. At high temperatures, the agreement with OPAL and Opacity Project is quite good. Comparisons at lower temperatures are more divergent as a result of differences in molecular and grain physics included in different calculations. The computation of Planck mean opacities performed with the opacity sampling method is shown to require a very large number of opacity sampling wavelength points; previously published results obtained with fewer wavelength points are shown to be significantly in error. Methods for requesting or obtaining the new tables are provided.
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These tables were only available for solar or scaled-solar abundance mixtures.
“These tables were only available for solar or scaledsolar abundance mixtures.”
From The Dawes Review 2: Nucleosynthesis and Stellar Yields of Low- and Intermediate-Mass Single Stars (2014) · cites this paper as Ferguson et al. 2005
The opacity tables of Alexander & Ferguson (1994) and later Ferguson et al. (2005) included the first detailed treatment of the inclusion of molecules to the total opacity at temperatures where T ≲ 10^4 K.
“The opacity tables of Alexander & Ferguson (1994) and later Ferguson et al. (2005) included the first detailed treatment of the inclusion of molecules to the total opacity at temperatures where T ≲ 10 4 K.”
From The Dawes Review 2: Nucleosynthesis and Stellar Yields of Low- and Intermediate-Mass Single Stars (2014) · cites this paper as Ferguson et al. 2005
Cites
The Limiting Effects of Dust in Brown Dwarf Model Atmospheres
Allard, F., Hauschildt, P. H., Alexander, D. R., Tamanai, A., & Schweitzer, A. (2001) · The Astrophysical Journal · doi:10.1086/321547 · Cited by 1,062 · see citing works
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The Dawes Review 2: Nucleosynthesis and Stellar Yields of Low- and Intermediate-Mass Single Stars
Karakas, A. I., & Lattanzio, J. C. (2014) · Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia · doi:10.1017/pasa.2014.21 · Cited by 735 · see citing works
“Besides the scaled-solar tables from Ferguson et al. (2005), other tables currently available for stellar evolutionary calculations are 1) Lederer & Aringer (2009), who account for an enhancement of C and N compared to the initial abundance for various metallicities, and PASA (2014)…”
Method
- Authors
- Ferguson, J. W., Alexander, D. R., Allard, F., Barman, T., Bodnarik, J. G., Hauschildt, P. H., Heffner‐Wong, A., & Tamanai, A.
- Affiliations
- Wichita State University (US)
- École Normale Supérieure de Lyon (FR)
- Venue
- The Astrophysical Journal
- Publisher
- American Astronomical Society
- Published
- 2005-04-10
- Volume
- 623
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 585-596
- ISSN
- 0004-637X (ISSN-L)
- 1538-4357
- OpenAlex
- W2161791806
- Cited by
- 1,327
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 69 · 2025: 85 · 2024: 66 · 2023: 57 · 2022: 66 · 2021: 85 · 2020: 73 · 2019: 60 · 2018: 86 · 2017: 73 · 2016: 89 · 2015: 50 · 2014: 84 · 2013: 71 · 2012: 69
- FWCI
- 18.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- The Astrophysical Journal (publishedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University) (submittedVersion)
- CERN Document Server (European Organization for Nuclear Research) (submittedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation (9874732, 0216178, 0236913)
- U.S. Department of Energy
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NAG53435, NCC5168)
- Wichita State University
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
- Office of Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPS‐0236913)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Astro and Planetary Science
- Keywords
- Rosseland mean opacity, Planck mean opacity, dust grains, equation of state, grain composition, optical constants, silicate grains, opacity tables, stellar atmospheres
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