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The Hα Spectroscopy Of Classical B-Emission Stars, Jessie M. Silaj

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Classical B-emission (Be) stars are rapidly-rotating, massive stars that possess a dense, equatorial, gaseous disk. The presence of a disk was first inferred from the Balmer series emission that these stars exhibit, and Hα emission lines remain both a hallmark observational feature and one of the key diagnostics in determining the physical conditions within the disk.

In the first chapter of this thesis, we investigate the possible role of line-driven winds in disk formation. To test if line-driven winds could supply enough material to account for the equatorial disk, we check for the presence of Hα emission in the models …