Research in Low Temperature Astrophysics at Wichita State University

Low Temperature Opacities

• Tables based upon calculations of Alexander and Ferguson ("Low Temperature Rosseland Opacities", David R. Alexander & Jason W. Ferguson 1994, ApJ, 437, 879) are available for both the Grevesse & Noels 1993 composition and the Seaton 1992 composition in the range of 0.00 -- 0.80 for X and 0.00 -- 0.10 for Z (see the OP web page). Tables with the alpha-elements enhanced by a factor of 2 are also available for the Seaton mix. All tables are in the OPAL format. Opacities are given in logarithm of the Rosseland opacity in cgs units as a function of log T and log R, where R = ρ/T₆³. The files below are gzip'ed tar files of several smaller files in the OPAL format.

• Tables based upon new calculations from Ferguson et al. (2005, ApJ, 623, 585 or see astro-ph for a preprint) are available below.  Other compositions will be added as they are calculated or requested.  The file format is similar to AF94 opacities above with a difference in the number of X and Z values.  Current tables have 9 X (0,  .1, .2, .35, .5, .7, .8, .9, .95, 1-Z) and 16 Z (0, .00001, .00003, .0001, .0003, .001, .002, .004, .01, .02, .03, .04, .05, .06, .08, .1) for 155 tables.

• Tables based upon the 126 normal X and Z values from OPAL are included below.  Each of these tables DO NOT contain grains.  The temperature range is truncated from 3.0 < log T < 4.1 for use in stellar evolution models.  If grains are desired or the other 29 extra X and Z values from the above tables then they may be requested.
  

• A set of tables with a variety of C/O ratios.  The relative abundances are given in this file C/O ratios.  Ferguson et al. 2005 and Weiss and Ferguson (2009, A&A, in press) should be referenced for these tables. 

• A small number of tables of Planck mean opacities are available from the Ferguson et al. (2005) computations.  The file format is the same as the Rosseland tables listed above with the 155 X and Z individual file names as .tpon designating Planck.  The table below lists the compositions available:

• Tables for special chemical compositions are available upon request to Jason Ferguson

Support

• Low temperature opacities at Wichita State University are supported NSF grant number AST-0239590.

The people in our local group are

• Jason W. Ferguson, associate professor of physics

Collaborators include

• David R. Alexander, Idaho State University
• France Allard, CRAL-Lyon
• Travis Barman, Lowell Observatory, AZ
• Peter H. Hauschildt, University of Hamburg

Former Students

• Julia Bodnarik, now at Vanderbilt University
• Akemi Tamanai, Astrophysical Institute and University Observatory, Jena
• Jon Penley, in Arizona
• Yu Chong Soo, University of Arkansas
• David Fusilier,
• Vickie Sieglen, Exploration place in Wichita KS
• Amanda Heffner-Wong, Harvard
• David Jaeger, in Florida

Back to WSU Physics

Jason W. Ferguson
Physics Dept, Box 32
Wichita State University
Wichita, KS 67260-0032
mailto:jason.ferguson@wichita.edu
Updated October 2006