On the interaction between a protoplanetary disk and a planet in an eccentric orbit: Application of dynamical friction

Abstract

We present a new analytic approach to the disk-planet interaction that is especially useful for planets with eccentricity larger than the disk aspect ratio. We make use of the dynamical friction formula to calculate the force exerted on the planet by the disk, and the force is averaged over the period of the planet. The resulting migration and eccentricity damping timescale agree very well with previous works in which the planet eccentricity is moderately larger than the disk aspect ratio. The advantage of this approach is that it is possible to apply this formulation to arbitrary large eccentricity. We have found that the timescale of the orbital evolution depends largely on the adopted disk model in the case of highly eccentric planets. We discuss the possible implication of our results for the theory of planet formation. © 2011. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..