Class 0 protostars in the Perseus molecular cloud: A correlation between the youngest protostars and the dense gas distribution

Abstract

We use PACS and SPIRE continuum data at 160 μm, 250 μm, 350 μm, and 500 μm from the Herschel Gould Belt Survey to sample seven clumps in Perseus: B1, B1-E, B5, IC 348, L1448, L1455, and NGC 1333. Additionally, we identify and characterize the embedded Class 0 protostars using detections of compact Herschel sources at 70 μm as well as archival Spitzer catalogs and SCUBA 850 μm photometric data. We identify 28 candidate Class 0 protostars, four of which are newly discovered sources not identified with Spitzer. We find that the star formation efficiency of clumps, as traced by Class 0 protostars, correlates strongly with the flatness of their respective column density distributions at high values. This correlation suggests that the fraction of high column density material in a clump reflects only its youngest protostellar population rather than its entire source population. We propose that feedback from either the formation or evolution of protostars changes the local density structure of clumps. © 2014. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.