10 micron spectroscopy of younger stars in the rho Ophiuchi cloud

Spectra in the 10 micrometer region were obtained of 14 young stars associated with the central core of the rho Oph dark cloud complex. Silicate dust emission and absorption features can be fairly well reproduced with simple models using the emissivity of the silicates in the Orion Trapezium region, believed to be typical of molecular cloud dust. A spectrum of the Trapezium star theta(sup 1) Ori D was obtained to define the emissivity more precisely. The emissivity of silicate dust around the late-type giant Mu Cep does not improve the fits to the absorption features and provides a poorer match to the emission features. None of the sources display a strong 11.2 micrometer peak like that seen in comet Halley and attributed to crystalline olivine. A broad weak feature near 11.2 micrometer, possibly related to the comet feature, may be present in the emission spectrum of the Herbig Ae star HD 150193. Absorption features toward two of the objects are narrower than would be expected from Trapezium-like silicates, suggesting differences in the composition of the silicates. The relation between the silicate extinction band depth and H2O ice band depths is determined for the deeply embedded objects. One late-type object, Elias 14, clearly shows the 11.25 micrometer aromatic hydrocarbon emission feature, possibly excited by the nearby B star, HD 147889, though the latter does not exhibit the feature.