Self-shielding clumps in starburst clusters

Abstract

AbstractYoung and massive star clusters above a critical mass form thermally unstable clumps reducing locally the temperature and pressure of the hot 107 K cluster wind. The matter reinserted by stars, and mass loaded in interactions with pristine gas and from evaporating circumstellar disks, accumulate on clumps that are ionized with photons produced by massive stars. We discuss if they may become self-shielded when they reach the central part of the cluster, or even before it, during their free fall to the cluster center. Here we explore the importance of heating efficiency of stellar winds.