The complete far infrared spectroscopic survey of Herbig AeBe stars obtained by ISO-LWS

The ISO-LWS archive has been systematically searched in order to obtain a complete far IR spectrophotometric survey of Herbig AeBe (HAEBE) stars. The investigated sample is constituted by 15 objects which, together with the 11 HAEBE we have published in two previous papers, represents about 25% of all the known HAEBE. This catalogue constitutes an essential data-base in view of far IR forthcoming space missions (e.g. Herschel Space Observatory), whose scientific programs are now in the planning phase. The new sources are analysed following the same approach as in our previous papers and both differences and similarities are discussed in a coherent framework. The [OI] 63 mum and the [CII] 158 mum lines are observed in many of the investigated sources, while the [OI] 145 mum remains often undetected, due to its relative faintness. Molecular lines, in form of CO high-J rotational transitions are detected in only three cases and appear associated to local density peaks. A new class of ISO-LWS spectra of HAEBE emerges, constituted by objects without any detected gas feature either in emission or in absorption. Not unexpectedly, these HAEBE are isolated from molecular clouds and, as such, lack of the cold circumstellar material probed by far IR ionic and molecular transitions. By comparing line intensity ratios with model predictions we find that photodissociation caused by the stellar photons and active in a clumpy medium is likely the prevalent excitation mechanism for the far IR lines. Finally, an evolutionary trend is found according to which the contribution of the far IR line emission to the total emitted energy is less and less important with time.