Deep near Infrared Observations of the X-ray Emitting Class 0 Protostar Candidates in the Orion Molecular Cloud-3

We obtained near infrared (NIR) imaging with the Subaru Telescope of the class 0 protostar candidates in the Orion Molecular Cloud-3, two of which were discovered to have X-ray emission by the Chandra X-ray Observatory. We found strong evidence for the class 0 nature of the X-ray sources. First, our deep K -band image shows no emission brighter than 19.6 mag from both of these X-ray sources. Since class I protostars or class II T Tauri stars should be easily detected in the NIR with this sensitivity, the lack of K -band detection suggests that they are likely much more obscured than class I protostars. Second, our H2 v = 1− 0 S(1) image shows a bubble-like feature from one of the X-ray class 0 protostar candidates, which reinforces the idea that this is a class 0 protostar. We also discuss the nature of nine NIR sources found in our deep image based on their colors, spatial coincidence with millimeter cores, and the properties of their X-ray counterparts. Subject headings: stars: pre-main sequence — Infrared: stars — X-rays: stars — Individual: OMC-3 Based on data collected at Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. Visiting Astronomer at the Infrared Telescope Facility, which is operated by the University of Hawaii under contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Visiting Astronomer at the Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii