Swetlana Hubrig

Magnetic Ap Stars in the Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram*

The evolutionary state of magnetic Ap stars is rediscussed using the recently released Hipparcos data. The distribution of the magnetic Ap stars of mass below 3 M☉ in the H-R diagram differs from that of the normal stars in the same temperature range at a high level of significance. Magnetic stars are concentrated toward the center of the main-sequence band. This is shown in two forms of the H-R diagram: one where log L is plotted against log Teff and a version more directly tied to the observed quantities, showing the astrometry-based luminosity (Arenou & Luri) against the (B2-G)0 index of Geneva photometry. In particular, it is found that magnetic fields appear only in stars that have already completed at least approximately 30% of their main-sequence lifetime. No clear picture emerges as to the possible evolution of the magnetic field across the main sequence. Hints of some (loose) relations between magnetic field strength and other stellar parameters are found: stars with shorter periods tend to have stronger fields, as do higher temperature and higher mass stars. A marginal trend of the magnetic flux to be lower in more slowly rotating stars may possibly be seen as suggesting a dynamo origin for the field. No correlation between the rotation period and the fraction of the main-sequence lifetime completed is observed, indicating that the slow rotation in these stars must already have been achieved before they became observably magnetic.

Detection of an extraordinarily large magnetic field in the unique ultra-cool Ap star HD 154708

We have discovered an extraordinarily large mean longitudinal magnetic field of 7.5 kG in the ultra-cool low mass Ap star HD 154708 using FORS 1 in spectropolarimetric mode. From UVES spectra, we have measured a mean magnetic field modulus of 24.5 kG. This is the second-largest mean magnetic field modulus ever measured in an Ap star. Furthermore, it is very likely that this star is one of the coolest and least massive among the Ap stars and is located in the H-R diagram in the same region in which rapidly oscillating Ap stars have been detected. We note that all known roAp stars have much smaller magnetic fields, by at least a factor of three.

HARPS spectropolarimetry of Herbig Ae/Be stars

Our knowledge of the presence and the strength of magnetic fields in intermediate-mass pre-main-sequence stars remains very poor. We present new magnetic field measurements in six Herbig Ae/Be stars observed with HARPS in spectropolarimetric mode. We downloaded from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) archive the publically available HARPS spectra for six Herbig Ae/Be stars. Wavelength shifts between right- and left-hand side circularly polarised spectra were interpreted in terms of a longitudinal magnetic field , using the moment technique introduced by Mathys. The application of the moment technique to the HARPS spectra allowed us in addition to study the presence of the crossover effect and quadratic magnetic fields. Our search for longitudinal magnetic fields resulted in first detections of weak magnetic fields in the Herbig Ae/Be stars HD58647 and HD98922. Further, we confirm the previous tentative detection of a weak magnetic field in HD104237 by Donati et al. and confirm the previous detection of a magnetic field in the Herbig Ae star HD190073. Surprisingly, the measured longitudinal magnetic field of HD190073, =91+-18G at a significance level of 5sigma is not in agreement with the measurement results of Alecian et al. (2013), =-10+-20G, who applied the LSD method to exactly the same data. No crossover effect was detected for any star in the sample. Only for HD98922 the crossover effect was found to be close to 3sigma with a measured value of -4228+-1443 km/s G. A quadratic magnetic field of the order of 10kG was detected in HD98922, and of ~3.5kG in HD104237.

Magnetic fields of HgMn stars

Context. The frequent presence of weak magnetic fields on the surface of spotted late-B stars with HgMn peculiarity in binary systems has been controversial during the two last decades. Recent studies of magnetic fields in these stars using the least-squares deconvolution (LSD) technique have failed to detect magnetic fields, indicating an upper limit on the longitudinal field between 8 and 15 G. In these LSD studies, assumptions were made that all spectral lines are identical in shape and can be described by a scaled mean profile. Aims. We re-analyse the available spectropolarimetric material by applying the moment technique on spectral lines of inhomogeneously distributed elements separately. Furthermore, we present new determinations of the mean longitudinal magnetic field for the HgMn star HD 65949 and the hotter analog of HgMn stars, the PGa star HD 19400, using FORS 2 installed at the VLT. We also give new measurements of the eclipsing system AR Aur with a primary star of HgMn peculiarity, which were obtained with the SOFIN spectropolarimeter installed at the Nordic Optical Telescope. Methods. We downloaded from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) archive the publically available HARPS spectra for eight HgMn stars and one normal and one superficially normal B-type star obtained in 2010. Out of this sample, three HgMn stars belong to spectroscopic double-lined systems. The application of the moment technique to the HARPS and SOFIN spectra allowed us to study the presence of the longitudinal magnetic field, the crossover effect, and quadratic magnetic fields. Results for the HgMn star HD 65949 and the PGa star HD 19400 are based on a linear regression analysis of low-resolution spectra obtained with FORS 2 in spectropolarimetric mode. Results. Our measurements of the magnetic field with the moment technique using spectral lines of several elements separately reveal the presence of a weak longitudinal magnetic field, a quadratic magnetic field, and the crossover effect on the surface of several HgMn stars as well as normal and superficially normal B-type stars. Furthermore, our analysis suggests the existence of intriguing correlations between the strength of the magnetic field, abundance anomalies, and binary properties. The results are discussed in the context of possible mechanisms responsible for the development of the element patches and complex magnetic fields on the surface of late B-type stars.

The presence of Nd and Pr in HgMn stars

Optical region spectra for a number of upper main sequence chemically peculiar (CP) stars have been observed to study singly and doubly ionized praseodymium and neodymium lines. In order to improve existing atomic data of these elements, laboratory measurements have been carried out with the Lund VUV Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS). From these measurements wavelengths and hyperne structure (hfs) have been studied for selected Pr ii ,P riii and Nd iii lines of astrophysical interest. Radiative lifetimes for some excited states of Pr ii have been determined with the aid of laser spectroscopy at the Lund Laser Center (LLC) and have been combined with branching fractions measured in the laboratory to calculate gf values for some of the stronger optical lines of Pr ii. With the aid of the derived gf values and laboratory measurements of the hfs, a praseodymium abundance was derived from selected Pr ii lines in the spectrum of the Am star 32 Aqr. This abundance was used to derive astrophysical gf values for selected Pr iii lines in 32 Aqr, and these gf values were used to get a praseodymium abundance for the HgMn star HR 7775. The praseodymium abundance in HR 7775 was then utilized to derive astrophysical gf values for all observable Pr iii lines in this star. The neodymium abundance, derived from unblended lines of Nd ii in HR 7775, has been utilized to establish astrophysical gf values for observed Nd iii lines in the optical region of this star. Selected Pr iii and Nd iii lines have been identied and studied in a number of HgMn stars and three hot Am stars. The praseodymium and neodymium abundance change rapidly from an approximate 1{1.2 dex enhancement for the hot Am stars to 1.5{3 dex enhancement for the cool HgMn stars, indicating a well-dened boundary between the hot Am and HgMn stars in the vicinity of 10 500 K. The enhancement of praseodymium and neodymium in Am and HgMn stars may be explained by diusive processes active in the stellar atmosphere, while the observed discontinuity might be explained by a thin hydrogen convection zone thought to be present for the Am stars, but absent in the HgMn stars. The absence of a convection zone would cause the diused elements to gather higher in the atmosphere of HgMn stars compared to Am stars, and explain the observed increase in abundance.

The nature of the recent extreme outburst of the Herbig Be/FU Orionis binary Z Canis Majoris

This paper presents exciting new results on the outburst of the young Z CMa system. Spectropolarimetric measurements show that the flux during outburst is dominated by the NW object. Additional data in several wavelength ranges strongly suggest that the optical outburst is more likely an opening up of the jet cavity in our direction - allowing for a path of escape for the optical radiation - rather than a bolometric outburst.

The X-ray emission from Z Canis Majoris during an FUor-like outburst and the detection of its X-ray jet

Accretion shocks have been recognized as an important X-ray emission mechanism for pre-main sequence stars, and yet the X-ray properties of FUor outbursts, events that are caused by violent accretion, have been given little attention. We observed the FUor object Z CMa during optical outburst and quiescence with Chandra. No significant changes in X-ray brightness and spectral shape were found, suggesting that the X-ray emission is coronal. The binary nature of Z CMa makes the origin of the X-ray source ambiguous. However, the moderate hydrogen column density derived from our data makes it unlikely that the embedded primary star is the Xray source. The secondary star, which is the FUor object, is thus responsible for both the X-ray emission and the ongoing accretion outburst, which seem, however, to be unrelated phenomena. The secondary is also known to drive a large outflow and jet, which we detect here for the first time in X-rays. The distance of the X-ray emitting outflow source to the central star is greater than in jets of low-mass stars.

Emission lines in the optical spectrum of 3 Cen A

Previously, weak emission lines had been detected at red wavelengths in the spectra of a limited sample of mid to late B type main sequence stars. A fuller description of the occurrence and origins of these lines has yet to be forwarded, in part due to the lack of observations detailing the spectral transitions involved. To address this deficiency, we present a line list of weak emission features found in the optical and near infrared spectral region of the chemically peculiar He-weak star 3 Cen A (HD 120709). Nearly 350 features, mostly associated with allowed transitions from high-excitation states of first ions, are catalogued along with identifications. Prominent among the emission lines are the spectra P II, Mn II, Fe II, Ni II and Cu II. Emission lines from Ca II, Si II and Hg II are also evident. Abundances are determined for several elements from synthetic spectrum fitting, with anomalies detected for the ions O I/II, P II/III and Si II/III. The LTE synthetic spectrum fitting also revealed that the low excitation 4s−4p transitions of Fe II predict an abundance that is greater than that determined from higher excitation 4d−4f transitions. Several of these latter transitions have upper energy levels that are found to be associated with emission lines. We also present empirical considerations for the excitation processes leading to the weak emission lines.

SPECTROPOLARIMETRIC VARIABILITY AND COROTATING STRUCTURE IN HD 92207

We report on low-resolution (R ≈ 3000) spectropolarimetry of the A0 supergiant star HD 92207. This star is well known for significant spectral variability. The source was observed on seven different nights spanning approximately three months in time. With a rotation period of approximately one year, our data cover approximately a quarter of the star’s rotational phase. Variability in the continuum polarization level is observed over this period of time. The polarization across the Hα line on any given night is typically different from the degree and position angle of the polarization in the continuum. Interestingly, Hβ is not in emission and does not show polarimetric variability. We associate the changes at Hα as arising in the wind, which is in accordance with the observed changes in the profile shape and equivalent width of Hα along with the polarimetric variability. For the continuum polarization, we explore a spiral shaped wind density enhancement in the equatorial plane of the star, in keeping with the suggestion of Kaufer et al. Variable polarization signatures across Hα are too complex to be explained by this simple model and will require a more intensive polarimetric follow-up study to interpret properly.

Characterising the magnetic fields of the Herbig Ae/Be stars HD 97048, HD 150193, HD 176386, and MWC 480

Our search for periodicities resulted in P = 0.693 d for HD 97048, P = 1.317 d for HD 150193, and P = 0.899 d for HD 176386. The magnetic field geometry can likely be described by a centred dipole with a polar magnetic field strength Bd of several hundred Gauss. The longitudinal magnetic-field measurements of MWC 480 reveal the presence of a strong kG field, which was undetected in our previous low-resolution polarimetric observations with FORS 1.