Search for wide, ultracool companions of nearby T dwarfs
Abstract
We report on our on-going proper motion survey of very low-mass (>=5 MJup), ultracool (Teff>=350 K) companions of nearby, field T-type brown dwarfs in the Solar neighborhood. Our project is intended to provide seeing-limited images of the targets to find companion candidates at wide separations (>=15 AU) and within an area of 3'×3' around the primaries, thus complementing previous searches that explored the inner-most regions. Data are collected in the J-band with 2-4-m class telescopes; the completeness magnitude of our survey goes from ~19.5 to ~21 mag (depending on seeing and transparency conditions). So far we have studied 11 late-L and T-type brown dwarfs located at d<=16 pc of the Sun. Only one faint, proper motion companion candidate is found; its definitive confirmation highly requires third epoch data.
- Publication:
-
15th Cambridge Workshop on Cool Stars, Stellar Systems, and the Sun
- Pub Date:
- February 2009
- DOI:
- 10.1063/1.3099178
- Bibcode:
- 2009AIPC.1094..576Z
- Keywords:
-
- 97.20.Vs;
- 97.82.-j;
- 95.55.-n;
- Low luminosity stars subdwarfs and brown dwarfs;
- Extrasolar planetary systems;
- Astronomical and space-research instrumentation;
- brown dwarfs;
- extrasolar planets;
- telescopes