FORMATION AND EVOLUTION OF PLANETARY SYSTEMS: PROPERTIES OF DEBRIS DUST AROUND SOLAR-TYPE STARS

We present Spitzer photometric (IRAC and MIPS) and spectroscopic (IRS low resolution) observations for 314 stars in the Formation and Evolution of Planetary Systems Legacy program. These data are used to investigate the properties and evolution of circumstellar dust around solar-type stars spanning ages from approximately 3 Myr-3 Gyr. We identify 46 sources that exhibit excess infrared emission above the stellar photosphere at 24 mu m, and 21 sources with excesses at 70 mu m. Five sources with an infrared excess have characteristics of optically thick primordial disks, while the remaining sources have properties akin to debris systems. The fraction of systems exhibiting a 24 mu m excess greater than 10.2% above the photosphere is 15% for ages < 300 Myr and declines to 2.7% for older ages. The upper envelope to the 70 mu m fractional luminosity appears to decline over a similar age range. The characteristic temperature of the debris inferred from the IRS spectra range between 60 and 180 K, with evidence for the presence of cooler dust to account for the strength of the 70 mu m excess emission. No strong correlation is found between dust temperature and stellar age. Comparison of the observational data with disk models containing a power-law distribution of silicate grains suggests that the typical inner-disk radius is greater than or similar to 10 AU. Although the interpretation is not unique, the lack of excess emission shortward of 16 mu m and the relatively flat distribution of the 24 mu m excess for ages less than or similar to 300 Myr is consistent with steady-state collisional models.