Hydrogen and helium ionization structure of gaseous nebulae |
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| Authors: | E Oliva N Panagia |
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| Institution: | 1. Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Firenze, Italy
2. Istituto di Radioastronomia CNR, Bologna, Italy
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| Abstract: | In this paper we discuss the ionization equilibrium of hydrogen and helium in a nebula with an arbitrary gas density distribution. If we consider the spectral characteristics of hot stars, a power law is found to provide a good approximation to the Lyman continuum spectrum for stars withT eff≤100 000 K. With this simplification the ionization equilibrium equation is analytically solved first for a pure hydrogen nebula, then for the general case of a nebula containing H, He, and heavy elements. A simple and quite general formula for the determination of the size and the emission of the He+ zone is obtained. Finally, the ionization equilibrium He++?He+ is considered. This problem can be decoupled from that of the ionization of H0 and He0 if the stellar spectrum is steeper thanv ?0.9 or, equivalently, if the star effective temperature is lower than 200 000 K. Within this limit, which surely includes all classicalHii regions and the low-medium excitation planetary nebulae, an analytical solution of the problem can be used. |
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