Various surveys focusing on the magnetic properties of intermediate-mass main-sequence (MS) stars have been previously carried out. One particularly puzzling outcome of these surveys is the ...identification of a dichotomy between the strong ({≳ }100 G), organized fields hosted by magnetic chemically peculiar (mCP) stars and the ultraweak ({≲ }1 G) fields associated with a small number of non-mCP MS stars. Despite attempts to detect intermediate strength fields (i.e. those with strengths ≳10 and {≲ }100 G), remarkably few examples have been found. Whether this so-called magnetic desert, separating the stars hosting ultraweak fields from the mCP stars truly exists has not been definitively answered. In 2007, a volume-limited spectropolarimetric survey of mCP stars using the MuSiCoS spectropolarimeter was initiated to test the existence of the magnetic desert by attempting to reduce the biases inherent in previous surveys. Since then, we have obtained a large number of ESPaDOnS and NARVAL Stokes V measurements allowing this survey to be completed. Here, we present the results of our homogeneous analysis of the rotational periods (inferred from photometric and magnetic variabilities) and magnetic properties (dipole field strengths and obliquity angles) of the 52 confirmed mCP stars located within a heliocentric distance of 100 pc. No mCP stars exhibiting field strengths {≲ }300 G are found within the sample, which is consistent with the notion that the magnetic desert is a real property and not the result of an observational bias. Additionally, we find evidence of magnetic field decay, which confirms the results of previous studies.
We present the first results of a volume-limited survey of main-sequence (MS) magnetic chemically peculiar (mCP) stars. The sample consists of all identified intermediate-mass MS stars (mCP and ...non-mCP) within a heliocentric distance of 100 pc as determined using Hipparcos parallaxes. The two populations are compared in order to determine the unique properties that allow a small fraction of MS stars with masses {≳ }1.4 M_⊙ to host strong, large-scale magnetic fields. A total of 52 confirmed mCP stars are identified using published magnetic, spectroscopic, and photometric observations along with archived and newly obtained spectropolarimetric (Stokes V) observations. We derive the fundamental parameters (effective temperatures, luminosities, masses, and evolutionary states) of the mCP and non-mCP populations using homogeneous analyses. A detailed analysis of the mCP stars is performed using the LLMODELS code, which allows observed spectral energy distributions to be modelled while incorporating chemical peculiarities and magnetic fields. The surface gravities and mean chemical abundances are derived by modelling averaged spectra using the GSSP and ZEEMAN spectral synthesis codes. Masses and stellar ages are derived using modern, densely calculated evolutionary model grids. We confirm a number of previously reported evolutionary properties associated with mCP stars including a conspicuously high incidence of middle-aged MS stars with respect to the non-mCP subsample; the incidence of mCP stars is found to sharply increase with mass from 0.3 per cent at 1.5 M_⊙ to ≈11 per cent at 3.8 M_⊙. Finally, we identify clear trends in the mean photospheric chemical abundances with stellar age.
Context. The brightest magnetic chemically peculiar stars θ Aur and ε UMa were targeted by numerous studies of their photometric and spectroscopic variability. Detailed maps of chemical abundance ...spots were repeatedly derived for both stars. However, owing to the weakness of their surface magnetic fields, very little information on the magnetic field geometries of these stars is available. Aims. In this study we aim to determine detailed magnetic field topologies of θ Aur and ε UMa based on modern, high-resolution spectropolarimetric observations. Methods. Both targets were observed in all four Stokes parameters using the Narval and ESPaDOnS spectropolarimeters. A multi-line technique of least-squares deconvolution was employed to detect polarisation signatures in spectral lines. These signatures were modelled with a Zeeman-Doppler imaging code. Results. We succeed in detecting variable circular and linear polarisation signatures for θ Aur. Only circular polarisation was detected for ε UMa. We obtain new sets of high-precision longitudinal magnetic field measurements using mean circular polarisation metal line profiles as well as hydrogen line cores, which are consistent with historical data. Magnetic inversions revealed distorted dipolar geometries in both stars. The Fe and Cr abundance distributions, reconstructed simultaneously with magnetic mapping, do not show a clear correlation with the local magnetic field properties, with the exception of a relative element underabundance in the horizontal field regions along the magnetic equators. Conclusions. Our study provides the first ever detailed surface magnetic field maps for broad-line, weak-field chemically peculiar stars, showing that their field topologies are qualitatively similar to those found in stronger field stars. The Fe and Cr chemical abundance maps reconstructed for θ Aur and ε UMa are at odds with the predictions of current theoretical atomic diffusion calculations.
We present the analysis performed on spectropolarimetric data of 97 O-type targets included in the framework of the Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) Survey. Mean least-squares deconvolved Stokes I ...and V line profiles were extracted for each observation, from which we measured the radial velocity, rotational and non-rotational broadening velocities, and longitudinal magnetic field B sub( l). The investigation of the Stokes I profiles led to the discovery of two new multiline spectroscopic systems (HD 46106, HD 204827) and confirmed the presence of a suspected companion in HD 37041. We present a modified strategy of the least-squares deconvolution technique aimed at optimizing the detection of magnetic signatures while minimizing the detection of spurious signatures in Stokes V. Using this analysis, we confirm the detection of a magnetic field in six targets previously reported as magnetic by the MiMeS collaboration (HD 108, HD 47129A2, HD 57682, HD 148937, CPD-28 2561, and NGC 1624-2), as well as report the presence of signal in Stokes V in three new magnetic candidates (HD 36486, HD 162978, and HD 199579). Overall, we find a magnetic incidence rate of 7 plus or minus 3 per cent, for 108 individual O stars (including all O-type components part of multiline systems), with a median uncertainty of the B sub( l) measurements of about 50 G. An inspection of the data reveals no obvious biases affecting the incidence rate or the preference for detecting magnetic signatures in the magnetic stars. Similar to A- and B-type stars, we find no link between the stars' physical properties (e.g. T sub( eff), mass, and age) and the presence of a magnetic field. However, the Of?p stars represent a distinct class of magnetic O-type stars.
Abstract
The rotational and magnetic properties of many magnetic hot stars are poorly characterized, therefore the Magnetism in Massive Stars and Binarity and Magnetic Interactions in various classes ...of Stars collaborations have collected extensive high-dispersion spectropolarimetric data sets of these targets. We present longitudinal magnetic field measurements 〈Bz〉 for 52 early B-type stars (B5–B0), with which we attempt to determine their rotational periods Prot. Supplemented with high-resolution spectroscopy, low-resolution Dominion Astrophysical Observatory circular spectropolarimetry, and archival Hipparcos photometry, we determined Prot for 10 stars, leaving only five stars for which Prot could not be determined. Rotational ephemerides for 14 stars were refined via comparison of new to historical magnetic measurements. The distribution of Prot is very similar to that observed for the cooler Ap/Bp stars. We also measured v sin i and vmac for all stars. Comparison to non-magnetic stars shows that v sin i is much lower for magnetic stars, an expected consequence of magnetic braking. We also find evidence that vmac is lower for magnetic stars. Least-squares deconvolution profiles extracted using single-element masks revealed widespread, systematic discrepancies in 〈Bz〉 between different elements: this effect is apparent only for chemically peculiar stars, suggesting it is a consequence of chemical spots. Sinusoidal fits to H line 〈Bz〉 measurements (which should be minimally affected by chemical spots), yielded evidence of surface magnetic fields more complex than simple dipoles in six stars for which this has not previously been reported; however, in all six cases, the second- and third-order amplitudes are small relative to the first-order (dipolar) amplitudes.
The Kepler space mission provided a wealth of δ Sct–γ Dor hybrid candidates. While some may be genuine hybrids, others might be misclassified due to the presence of a binary companion or to ...rotational modulation caused by magnetism and related surface inhomogeneities. In particular, the Kepler δ Sct–γ Dor hybrid candidate HD 188774 shows a few low frequencies in its light and radial velocity curves, whose origin is unclear. In this work, we check for the presence of a magnetic field in HD 188774. We obtained two spectropolarimetric measurements with an Echelle SpectroPolarimetric Device for the Observation of Stars (ESPaDOnS) at Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope. The data were analysed with the least-squares deconvolution (LSD) method. We detected a clear magnetic signature in the Stokes V LSD profiles. The origin of the low frequencies detected in HD 188774 is therefore most probably the rotational modulation of surface spots possibly related to the presence of a magnetic field. Consequently, HD 188774 is not a genuine hybrid δ Sct–γ Dor star, but the first known magnetic main-sequence δ Sct star. This makes it a prime target for future asteroseismic and spot modelling. This result casts new light on the interpretation of the Kepler results for other δ Sct–γ Dor hybrid candidates.
ABSTRACT
Magnetic confinement of stellar winds leads to the formation of magnetospheres, which can be sculpted into centrifugal magnetospheres (CMs) by rotational support of the corotating plasma. ...The conditions required for the CMs of magnetic early B-type stars to yield detectable emission in H α – the principal diagnostic of these structures – are poorly constrained. A key reason is that no detailed study of the magnetic and rotational evolution of this population has yet been performed. Using newly determined rotational periods, modern magnetic measurements, and atmospheric parameters determined via spectroscopic modelling, we have derived fundamental parameters, dipolar oblique rotator models, and magnetospheric parameters for 56 early B-type stars. Comparison to magnetic A- and O-type stars shows that the range of surface magnetic field strength is essentially constant with stellar mass, but that the unsigned surface magnetic flux increases with mass. Both the surface magnetic dipole strength and the total magnetic flux decrease with stellar age, with the rate of flux decay apparently increasing with stellar mass. We find tentative evidence that multipolar magnetic fields may decay more rapidly than dipoles. Rotational periods increase with stellar age, as expected for a magnetic braking scenario. Without exception, all stars with H α emission originating in a CM are (1) rapid rotators, (2) strongly magnetic, and (3) young, with the latter property consistent with the observation that magnetic fields and rotation both decrease over time.
Alhena (γ Gem) was observed in the frame of the BRIght Target Explorer spectropolarimetric survey, which gathers high resolution, high signal-to-noise, high sensitivity, spectropolarimetric ...observations of all stars brighter than V = 4 to combine seismic and spectropolarimetric studies of bright stars. We present here the discovery of a very weak magnetic field on the Am star Alhena, thanks to very high signal-to-noise spectropolarimetric data obtained with Narval at Télescope Bernard Lyot. All previously studied Am stars show the presence of ultraweak (sub-Gauss) fields with Zeeman signatures with an unexpected prominent positive lobe. However, Alhena presents a slightly stronger (but still very weak, only a few Gauss) field with normal Zeeman signatures with a positive and negative lobe, as found in stronger field (hundreds or thousands of Gauss) stars. It is the first detection of a normal magnetic signature in an Am star. Alhena is thus a very interesting object, which might provide the clue to understanding the peculiar shapes of the magnetic signatures of the other Am stars.
Context.
HD 49330 is an early Be star that underwent an outburst during its five-month observation with the CoRoT satellite. An analysis of its light curve revealed several independent
p
and
g
...pulsation modes, in addition to showing that the amplitude of the modes is directly correlated with the outburst.
Aims.
We modelled the results obtained with CoRoT to understand the link between pulsational parameters and the outburst of this Be star.
Methods.
We modelled the flattening of the structure of the star due to rapid rotation in two ways: Chandrasekhar-Milne’s expansion and 2D structure computed with ROTORC. We then modelled
κ
-driven pulsations. We also adapted the formalism of the excitation and amplitude of stochastically excited gravito-inertial modes to rapidly rotating stars, and we modelled those pulsations as well.
Results.
We find that while pulsation
p
modes are indeed excited by the
κ
mechanism, the observed
g
modes are, rather, a result of stochastic excitation. In contrast,
g
and
r
waves are stochastically excited in the convective core and transport angular momentum to the surface, increasing its rotation rate. This destabilises the external layers of the star, which then emits transient stochastically excited
g
waves. These transient waves produce most of the low-frequency signal detected in the CoRoT data and ignite the outburst. During this unstable phase,
p
modes disappear at the surface because their cavity is broken. Following the outburst and ejection of the surface layer, relaxation occurs, making the transient
g
waves disappear and
p
modes reappear.
Conclusions.
This work includes the first coherent model of stochastically excited gravito-inertial pulsation modes in a rapidly rotating Be star. It provides an explanation for the correlation between the variation in the amplitude of frequencies detected in the CoRoT data and the occurrence of an outburst. This scenario could apply to other pulsating Be stars, providing an explanation to the long-standing questions surrounding Be outbursts and disks.
Recently, high-precision optical 2-min cadence light curves obtained with TESS for targets located in the mission's defined first four sectors have been released. The majority of these high-cadence ...and high-precision measurements currently span {˜ }28 d, thereby allowing periodic variability occurring on time-scales {≲ }14 d to potentially be detected. Magnetic chemically peculiar (mCP) A-type stars are well known to exhibit rotationally modulated photometric variability that is produced by inhomogeneous chemical abundance distributions in their atmospheres. While mCP stars typically exhibit rotation periods that are significantly longer than those of non-mCP stars, both populations exhibit typical periods {≲ }10 d; therefore, the early TESS releases are suitable for searching for rotational modulation of the light curves of both mCP and non-mCP stars. We present the results of our search for A-type stars that exhibit variability in their TESS light curves that is consistent with rotational modulation based on the first two data releases obtained from sectors 1 to 4. Our search yielded 134 high-probability candidate rotational variables - 60 of which have not been previously reported. Approximately half of these stars are identified in the literature as Ap (mCP) stars. Comparisons between the subsample of high-probability candidate rotationally variable Ap stars and the subsample of stars that are not identified as Ap reveal that the latter subsample exhibits statistically (i) shorter rotation periods and (ii) significantly lower photometric amplitudes.
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