Secular Excitation of Polar Neptune Orbits in Pure Disk–Planet Systems

Abstract The stellar spin–orbit angles of Neptune-sized planets present a primordial yet puzzling view of the planetary formation epoch. The striking dichotomy of aligned and perpendicular orbital configurations are suggestive of obliquity excitation through secular resonance—a process where the precession of a hot Neptune becomes locked onto a forcing frequency and is slowly guided into a perpendicular state. Previous models of resonant capture have involved the presence of companion perturbers to the star–planet–disk system, but in most cases, such companions are not confirmed to be present. In this work, we present a mechanism for exciting Neptunes to polar orbits in systems without giant perturbers, where photoevaporation is the self-contained mechanism. Photoevaporation opens a gap in the protoplanetary disk at ∼1 au, and the inner disk continues to viscously accrete onto the host star, precessing quickly due to the perturbation of the outer disk. As the inner disk shrinks, it precesses more slowly and encounters a resonance with the J 2 precession of the Neptune, quickly exciting it to a polar configuration. While likely not applicable to more massive planets that trigger backreactions onto the disk, this mechanism reproduces the obliquities of small planets in multiple respects.