On the Density Distribution in Star-forming Interstellar Clouds
arXiv:1007.2950 · doi:10.1088/2041-8205/727/1/L20
Abstract
We use deep adaptive mesh refinement simulations of isothermal self-gravitating supersonic turbulence to study the imprints of gravity on the mass density distribution in molecular clouds. The simulations show that the density distribution in self-gravitating clouds develops an extended power-law tail at high densities on top of the usual lognormal. We associate the origin of the tail with self-similar collapse solutions and predict the power index values in the range from -7/4 to -3/2 that agree with both simulations and observations of star-forming molecular clouds.
5 pages, 3 color figures; published version
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