Ionized carbon in side-illuminated molecular clouds.

Abstract

We have observed the 2P3/2-2P1/2 fine-structure line of C II at 1900 GHz in five sources with ionization fronts nearly perpendicular to the plane of the sky. The LSR velocity of the C II emission is generally in good agreement with that observed for molecular species such as CO. However, the observed line widths of 3-14 km s-1 are typically wider than those of molecular lines and often show rapid spatial variations in the regions observed. In some sources this may indicate that part of the C II emanates from an ionized gas component, while for others it suggests an association between C II emission and an outflow. The C II brightness temperatures are typically equal to or slighty higher than the dust temperature at all locations observed. In the optically thin approximation, C II excitation temperatures are > or = 100 K and column densities are < or = 10(18) cm-2 for all sources except M17, which has a more intense and complicated line profile with a larger spatial extent than any other source observed. The quoted column density estimates derived in the optically thin limit appear to be somewhat lower than those predicted by models of photodissociation regions for sources with a side-illuminated geometry, but uncertainties in the UV flux and geometry of the ionization front preclude a definitive comparison. The estimated column densities would be higher if the C II emission were somewhat optically thick, in which case the ionized carbon would be more in equilibrium with the dust at temperatures lower than predicted by current models.