P. Bergeron

Photometric Calibration of Hydrogen- and Helium-Rich White Dwarf Models

Bolometric corrections and color indices on various photometric systems are provided for an extensive grid of hydrogen- and helium-rich white dwarf model atmospheres. Absolute visual magnitudes, masses, and ages are also obtained for each model from detailed evolutionary cooling sequences appropriate for these stars. The results of our calculations are briefly compared with published observational material. These calculations can easily be extended to any given photometric system.

ATMOSPHERIC PARAMETERS OF FIELD SUBDWARF B STARS

High signal-to-noise ratio optical spectrophotometry of a sample of field subluminous B stars drawn largely from the Palomar Green ultraviolet-excess survey is analyzed with a new grid of model atmospheres and synthetic spectra. The stellar effective temperatures, surface gravities, and photospheric helium abundances are determined simultaneously from a detailed analysis of hydrogen and helium absorption line profiles. The derived temperatures and gravities place the subluminous B stars in the theoroetical Hertzsprung-Russell (H-R) diagram along and bounded below by theoretical sequences of the zero-age extended horizontal branch, lending strong support to the hypothesis that these stars are composed of helium-burning cores of approximately 0.5 solar mass overlain by very thin layers of hydrogen (approximately less than 0.02 solar mass). Various scenarios for their past evolutionary history are examined in the context of their probable future evolution into white dwarfs of lower than average mass.

The Chemical Evolution of Cool White Dwarfs and the Age of the Local Galactic Disk

Photometric and spectroscopic observations of 110 cool white dwarf stars are presented and analyzed with state-of-the-art model atmosphere calculations appropriate for cool white dwarfs with pure hydrogen and pure helium, as well as mixed H/He compositions. High signal-to-noise spectroscopy reveals the presence of Hα in 20 white dwarfs previously classified as DC stars, four of which are magnetic. Cool white dwarfs are shown to form a narrow sequence in both color-color and color-magnitude diagrams, with little evidence for separation between hydrogen- and helium-rich compositions in these diagrams. The observed energy distributions are obtained from a combination of both optical BVRI and infrared JHK photometric data and used to derive both the effective temperature and the atmospheric composition of each star. Stellar masses are also obtained for 60 white dwarfs with known trigonometric parallaxes. Some discrepancies between the observed energy distributions and those predicted by the model atmospheres are described. In particular, evidence for the presence of a UV opacity source in the coolest hydrogen-rich white dwarfs is interpreted in terms of a pseudo continuum opacity originating from the Lyman edge. The simultaneous analysis of the photometric and spectroscopic observations provides a detailed picture of the chemical composition of cool white dwarfs. Most cool white dwarfs have energy distributions that are well reproduced by either pure hydrogen or pure helium models, with little evidence for objects with mixed atmospheric compositions. We identify a peculiar class of non-DA star with Teff > 6000 K whose energy distributions are well reproduced by pure hydrogen models but whose spectra do not show Hα. Our results reveal an inhomogeneous temperature distribution of hydrogen- and helium-rich white dwarfs, and in particular the presence of a non-DA gap in the range 5000 Teff 6000 K. The chemical evolution of cool white dwarfs is discussed at length with respect to our findings. We show that no known physical mechanisms (e.g., convective mixing, convective dredge-up, accretion from the interstellar medium) can account for the temperature distribution of hydrogen- and helium-rich white dwarfs. Possible new mechanisms that could explain our results are presented. We propose a mechanism by which hydrogen is accreted onto the surface of helium-rich white dwarfs while remaining spectroscopically invisible. Observational evidence that supports our hypothesis is discussed. Lower limits for the age of the local Galactic disk are obtained by determining the age of the oldest white dwarfs in our sample. Ages in the range 6.5-10 Gyr are derived from evolutionary models with various core compositions and helium envelope masses.

SDSS DR7 WHITE DWARF CATALOG

We present a new catalog of spectroscopically confirmed white dwarf stars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7 spectroscopic catalog. We find 20,407 white dwarf spectra, representing 19,712 stars, and provide atmospheric model fits to 14,120 DA and 1011 DB white dwarf spectra from 12,843 and 923 stars, respectively. These numbers represent more than a factor of two increase in the total number of white dwarf stars from the previous SDSS white dwarf catalogs based on DR4 data. Our distribution of subtypes varies from previous catalogs due to our more conservative, manual classifications of each star in our catalog, supplementing our automatic fits. In particular, we find a large number of magnetic white dwarf stars whose small Zeeman splittings mimic increased Stark broadening that would otherwise result in an overestimated log g if fit as a non-magnetic white dwarf. We calculate mean DA and DB masses for our clean, non-magnetic sample and find the DB mean mass is statistically larger than that for the DAs.

New model atmospheres for very cool white dwarfs with mixed H/He and pure He compositions

New model atmosphere calculations for very cool white dwarfs with mixed H/He and pure He compositions are presented. The hydrogen-rich models incorporate improved cross section calculations of the collision-induced absorption by molecular hydrogen due to collisions with H2, H, and He. The effects associated with variations in the effective temperature (T(sub eff) greater than or equal to 4000 and less than or equal to 10,000 K), the surface gravity (log g greater than or equal to 7.5 and less than or equal to 9.5), and the chemical composition (N(He)/N(H) greater than or equal to O and less than or equal to 100) are investigated. Results from earlier calculations are confirmed qualitatively, but a more detailed comparison reveals large quantitative deviations. Cool white dwarfs with mixed H/He chemical compositions are shown to be easily recognizable from their predicted strong infrared flux deficiency. Pure helium model calculations are described as well. These include a modified version of the recently developed equation of state of D. Saumon and G. Chabrier. Nonideal effects brought about by various equations of state are explored in detail. For the purpose of this analysis, a model of pressure ionization based on an accurate description of the interactions in a mostly atomic helium fluid is developed. The effects of pressure ionization are shown to be the most important issue in the model calculations. A critical discussion of previous generations of pure helium model calculations is presented. Finally, broadband color indices are provided for the complete model grid.

Stellar Evolution in NGC 6791: Mass Loss on the Red Giant Branch and the Formation of Low-Mass White Dwarfs* **

We present the first detailed study of the properties (temperatures, gravities, and masses) of the NGC 6791 white dwarf population. This unique stellar system is both one of the oldest (8 Gyr) and most metal-rich ([Fe/H] ~ +0.4) open clusters in our Galaxy and has a color-magnitude diagram (CMD) that exhibits both a red giant clump and a much hotter extreme horizontal branch. Fitting the Balmer lines of the white dwarfs in the cluster using Keck/LRIS spectra suggests that most of these stars are undermassive, M = 0.43 ± 0.06 M☉, and therefore could not have formed from canonical stellar evolution involving the helium flash at the tip of the red giant branch. We show that at least 40% of NGC 6791s evolved stars must have lost enough mass on the red giant branch to avoid the flash and therefore did not convert helium into carbon-oxygen in their core. Such increased mass loss in the evolution of the progenitors of these stars is consistent with the presence of the extreme horizontal branch in the CMD. This unique stellar evolutionary channel also naturally explains the recent finding of a very young age (2.4 Gyr) for NGC 6791 from white dwarf cooling theory; helium-core white dwarfs in this cluster will cool ~3 times slower than carbon-oxygen-core stars, and therefore the corrected white dwarf cooling age is in fact 7 Gyr, consistent with the well-measured main-sequence turnoff age. These results provide direct empirical evidence that mass loss is much more efficient in high-metallicity environments and therefore may be critical in interpreting the ultraviolet upturn in elliptical galaxies.

The True Incidence of Magnetism Among Field White Dwarfs

We study the incidence of magnetism in white dwarfs from three large and well-observed samples of hot, cool, and nearby white dwarfs in order to test whether the fraction of magnetic degenerates is biased and whether it varies with effective temperature, cooling age, or distance. The magnetic fraction is considerably higher for the cool sample of Bergeron, Ruiz, & Leggett and the Holberg, Oswalt, & Sion sample of local white dwarfs than it is for the generally hotter white dwarfs of the Palomar-Green survey. We show that the mean mass of magnetic white dwarfs in this survey is 0.93 M⊙ or more, so there may be a strong bias against their selection in the magnitude-limited Palomar-Green survey. We argue that this bias is not as important in the samples of cool and nearby white dwarfs. However, this bias may not account for all of the difference in the magnetic fractions of these samples. It is not clear that the magnetic white dwarfs in the cool and local samples are drawn from the same population as the hotter PG stars. In particular, two or three of the cool sample are low-mass white dwarfs in unresolved binary systems. Moreover, there is a suggestion from the local sample that the fractional incidence may increase with decreasing temperature, luminosity, and/or cooling age. Overall, the true incidence of magnetism at the level of ~2 MG or greater is at least ~10%, and it could be higher. Limited studies capable of detecting lower field strengths down to ~10 kG suggest by implication that the total fraction may be substantially higher then 10%.

ON THE PURITY OF THE ZZ CETI INSTABILITY STRIP: DISCOVERY OF MORE PULSATING DA WHITE DWARFS ON THE BASIS OF OPTICAL SPECTROSCOPY

We report the discovery of two new ZZ Ceti pulsators, LP 133-144 and HE 1258+0123, selected on the basis of model atmosphere fits to optical spectroscopic data. The atmospheric parameters for LP 133-144 (Teff = 11,800 ± 200 K and log g = 7.87 ± 0.05) and for HE 1258+0123 (Teff = 11,410 ± 200 K and log g = 8.04 ± 0.05) place them within the empirical boundaries of the ZZ Ceti instability strip. This brings the number of known ZZ Ceti stars to a total of 36, a quarter of which have now been discovered using the spectroscopic approach for estimating their atmospheric parameters. This method has had a 100% success rate so far in predicting the variability of candidate ZZ Ceti stars. We have also analyzed additional spectra of known nonvariable white dwarfs in the vicinity of the ZZ Ceti instability strip. Our study further strengthens the idea that ZZ Ceti stars occupy a pure region in the log g-Teff plane, a region where no nonvariable stars are found. This result supports the thesis that ZZ Ceti pulsators represent a phase through which all DA stars must evolve.

On the Spectral Evolution of Cool, Helium-Atmosphere White Dwarfs: Detailed Spectroscopic and Photometric Analysis of DZ Stars

We present a detailed analysis of a large spectroscopic and photometric sample of DZ white dwarfs based on our latest model atmosphere calculations. We revise the atmospheric parameters of the trigonometric parallax sample of Bergeron, Leggett, & Ruiz (12 stars) and analyze 147 new DZ white dwarfs discovered in the SDSS. The inclusion of metals and hydrogen in our model atmosphere calculations leads to different atmospheric parameters than those derived from pure helium models. Calcium abundances are found in the range from log(Ca/He) = -12 to -8. We also find that fits of the coolest objects show peculiarities, suggesting that our physical models may not correctly describe the conditions of high atmospheric pressure encountered in the coolest DZ stars. We find that the mean mass of the 11 DZ stars with trigonometric parallaxes, M = 0.63 M☉, is significantly lower than that obtained from pure helium models, M = 0.78 M☉, and in much better agreement with the mean mass of other types of white dwarfs. We determine hydrogen abundances for 27% of the DZ stars in our sample, while only upper limits are obtained for objects with low-S/N spectroscopic data. We confirm with a high level of confidence that the accretion rate of hydrogen is at least 2 orders of magnitude smaller than that of metals (and up to 5 in some cases) to be compatible with the observations. We find a correlation between the hydrogen abundance and the effective temperature, suggesting for the first time empirical evidence of a lower temperature boundary for the hydrogen screening mechanism. Finally, we speculate on the possibility that the DZA white dwarfs could be the result of the convective mixing of thin hydrogen-rich atmospheres with the underlying helium convection zone.

Detailed Spectroscopic and Photometric Analysis of DQ White Dwarfs

We present an analysis of spectroscopic and photometric observations of cool DQ white dwarfs based on improved model atmosphere calculations. In particular, we revise the atmospheric parameters of the trigonometric parallax sample of Bergeron, Leggett, & Ruiz and discuss the astrophysical implications on the temperature scale and mean mass, as well as the chemical evolution of these stars. We also analyze 40 new DQ stars discovered in the First Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Our analysis confirms that effective temperatures (Teff) derived from model atmospheres including carbon are significantly lower than the temperatures obtained from pure helium models. Similarly, the mean mass of the trigonometric parallax sample, M = 0.62 M?, is significantly lower than that obtained from pure helium models, M = 0.73 M?, and more consistent with the spectroscopic mean mass of DB stars, M = 0.59 M?, the most likely progenitors of DQ white dwarfs. We find that DQ stars form a remarkably well-defined sequence in a carbon abundance versus effective temperature diagram; below Teff ~ 10,000 K, carbon pollution decreases monotonically with decreasing effective temperature. Improved evolutionary models including diffusion and connecting to the PG 1159 phase are used to infer a typical value for the thickness of the helium layer MHe/M between 10-3 and 10-2, compatible with the predictions of post-AGB models. Several DQ stars in our sample, however, show larger than average carbon abundances. We argue that these DQ stars are all massive white dwarfs and could represent the high-mass tail of the white dwarf mass distribution, with their hotter counterparts corresponding to the hot DQ stars reported recently by Liebert et al. The number distribution of DQ white dwarfs as a function of effective temperature clearly shows a sudden drop at about Teff ~ 7000 K and an abrupt cutoff at Teff ~ 6000 K. The existence of this cutoff is now statistically more significant with the addition of the SDSS stars. The physical mechanism responsible for this cutoff is still unknown, even though it is believed to be somehow related to the existence of the so-called C2H stars at lower temperatures.