CARMA Large Area Star Formation Survey: Dense Gas in the Young L1451
  Region of Perseus
  We present a 3 mm spectral line and continuum survey of L1451 in the Perseus
Molecular Cloud. These observations are from the CARMA Large Area Star
Formation Survey (CLASSy), which also imaged Barnard 1, NGC 1333, Serpens Main
and Serpens South. L1451 is the survey region with the lowest level of star
formation activity---it contains no confirmed protostars. HCO+, HCN, and N2H+
(J=1-0) are all detected throughout the region, with HCO+ the most spatially
widespread, and molecular emission seen toward 90% of the area above N(H_2)
column densities of 1.9x10^21 cm^-2. HCO+ has the broadest velocity dispersion,
near 0.3 km/s on average, compared to ~0.15 km/s for the other molecules, thus
representing a range from supersonic to subsonic gas motions. Our non-binary
dendrogram analysis reveals that the dense gas traced by each molecule has
similar hierarchical structure, and that gas surrounding the candidate first
hydrostatic core (FHSC), L1451-mm, and other previously detected single-dish
continuum clumps have similar hierarchical structure; this suggests that
different sub-regions of L1451 are fragmenting on the pathway to forming young
stars. We determined the three-dimensional morphology of the largest detectable
dense gas structures to be relatively ellipsoidal compared to other CLASSy
regions, which appeared more flattened at largest scales. A virial analysis
shows the most centrally condensed dust structures are likely unstable against
collapse. Additionally, we identify a new spherical, centrally condensed N2H+
feature that could be a new FHSC candidate. The overall results suggest L1451
is a young region starting to form its generation of stars within turbulent,
hierarchical structures.
