Star Formation in Self-Gravitating Molecular Cloud: The Critical Mass and the Core Accretion Rate

Abstract

Understanding how stars form in molecular clouds is one of the ongoing research areas in astrophysics. Star formation is the fundamental process to which our current understanding remains incomplete due to the complexity of the physics that drives their formation within molecular clouds. In this article theoretical modelling of the lowest possible mass of the cloud needed for collapse and the core accretion rate has been presented for the molecular cloud collapsing under its gravity. In many of previous studies the critical mass of star forming cloud under its gravity has been modelled using kinetic energy and gravitational potential energy. However, we test the effect of thermodynamic efficiency factor together with other physical processes in describing the critical mass, and controlling or triggering the rate of mass falling onto the central core. Assuming that, the ratio of radiation luminosity to gravitational energy released per unit time of the collapsing MC is less than unity. Following this conceptual framework we have formulated the critical mass and the core accretion rate of the self-gravitating molecular cloud.