DETECTION OF A MAGNETIZED DISK AROUND A VERY YOUNG PROTOSTAR

We present subarcsecond resolution polarimetric observations of the 878 μm thermal dust continuum emission obtained with the Submillimeter Array toward the IRAS 16293–2422 protostellar binary system. We report the detection of linearly polarized dust emission arising from the circumstellar disk associated with the IRAS 16293–2422 B protostar. The fractional polarization of ≅ 1.4% is only slightly lower than that expected from theoretical calculations in such disks. The magnetic field structure on the plane of the sky derived from the dust polarization suggests a complex magnetic field geometry in the disk, possibly associated with a rotating disk that is wrapping the field lines as expected from the simulations. The polarization around IRAS 16293–2422 A at subarcsecond angular resolution is only marginally detected