Nonradiative Electronic Deexcitation Time Scales in Metal Clusters

The life-times due to Auger-electron emission for a hole on a deep electronic shell of neutral and charged sodium clusters are studied for different sizes. We consider spherical clusters and calculate the Auger-transition probabilities using the energy levels and wave functions calculated in the Local-Density-Approximation (LDA). We obtain that Auger emission processes are energetically not allowed for neutral and positively charged sodium clusters. In general, the Auger probabilities in small Na$_N^-$ clusters are remarkably different from the atomic ones and exhibit a rich size dependence. The Auger decay times of most of the cluster sizes studied are orders of magnitude larger than in atoms and might be comparable with typical fragmentation times.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

LBT transmission spectroscopy of HAT-P-12b: confirmation of a cloudy atmosphere with no significant alkali features

The hot sub-Saturn-mass exoplanet HAT-P-12b is an ideal target for transmission spectroscopy because of its inflated radius. We observed one transit of the planet with the multi-object double spectrograph (MODS) on the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) with the binocular mode and obtained an atmosphere transmission spectrum with a wavelength coverage of $\sim$ 0.4 -- 0.9 $\mathrm{\mu}$m. The spectrum is relatively flat and does not show any significant sodium or potassium absorption features. Our result is consistent with the revised Hubble Space Telescope (HST) transmission spectrum of a previous work, except that the HST result indicates a tentative detection of potassium. The potassium discrepancy could be the result of statistical fluctuation of the HST dataset. We fit the planetary transmission spectrum with an extensive grid of cloudy models and confirm the presence of high-altitude clouds in the planetary atmosphere. The fit was performed on the combined LBT and HST spectrum, which has an overall wavelength range of 0.4 -- 1.6 $\mathrm{\mu}$m. The LBT/MODS spectrograph has unique advantages in transmission spectroscopy observations because it can cover a wide wavelength range with a single exposure and acquire two sets of independent spectra simultaneously.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic

Polarisation of very-low-mass stars and brown dwarfs

Ultra-cool dwarfs of the L spectral type (Teff=1400-2200K) are known to have dusty atmospheres. Asymmetries of the dwarf surface may arise from rotationally-induced flattening and dust-cloud coverage, and may result in non-zero linear polarisation through dust scattering. We aim to study the heterogeneity of ultra-cool dwarfs' atmospheres and the grain-size effects on the polarisation degree in a sample of nine late M, L and early T dwarfs. We obtain linear polarimetric imaging measurements using FORS1 at the Very Large Telescope, in the Bessel I filter, and for a subset in the Bessel R and the Gunn z filters. We measure a polarisation degree of (0.31+/-0.06)% for LHS102BC. We fail to detect linear polarisation in the rest of our sample, with upper-limits on the polarisation degree of each object of 0.09% to 0.76% (95% CL). For those targets we do not find evidence of large-scale cloud horizontal structure in our data. Together with previous surveys, our results set the fraction of ultra-cool dwarfs with detected linear polarisation to (30+10-6)% (1-sigma). For three brown dwarfs, our observations indicate polarisation degrees different (at the 3-sigma level) than previously reported, giving hints of possible variations. Our results fail to correlate with the current model predictions for ultra-cool dwarf polarisation for a flattening-induced polarisation, or with the variability studies for a polarisation induced by an hetereneous cloud cover. This stresses the intricacy of each of those tasks, but may as well proceed from complex and dynamic atmospheric processes.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, accepted by A&A. Reference problem and a few typos corrected; improved error treatment of Zapatero Osorio et al (2005) data, leading to minor differences in the result

Ionic structure and photoabsorption in medium sized sodium clusters

We present ground-state configurations and photoabsorption spectra of Na-7+, Na-27+ and Na-41+. Both the ionic structure and the photoabsorption spectra of medium-size sodium clusters beyond Na-20 have been calculated self-consistently with a nonspherical treatment of the valence electrons in density functional theory. We use a local pseudopotential that has been adjusted to experimental bulk properties and the atomic 3s level of sodium. Our studies have shown that both the ionic structure of the ground state and the positions of the plasmon resonances depend sensitively on the pseudopotential used in the calculation, which stresses the importance of its consistent use in both steps.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in PRB, tentatively July 15th, 1998 some typos corrected, brought to nicer forma

Characterizing Exoplanets in the Visible and Infrared: A Spectrometer Concept for the EChO Space Mission

Transit-spectroscopy of exoplanets is one of the key observational techniques to characterize the extrasolar planet and its atmosphere. The observational challenges of these measurements require dedicated instrumentation and only the space environment allows an undisturbed access to earth-like atmospheric features such as water or carbon-dioxide. Therefore, several exoplanet-specific space missions are currently being studied. One of them is EChO, the Exoplanet Characterization Observatory, which is part of ESA's Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 program, and which is one of four candidates for the M3 launch slot in 2024. In this paper we present the results of our assessment study of the EChO spectrometer, the only science instrument onboard this spacecraft. The instrument is a multi-channel all-reflective dispersive spectrometer, covering the wavelength range from 400 nm to 16 microns simultaneously with a moderately low spectral resolution. We illustrate how the key technical challenge of the EChO mission - the high photometric stability - influences the choice of spectrometer concept and drives fundamentally the instrument design. First performance evaluations underline the fitness of the elaborated design solution for the needs of the EChO mission.Comment: 20 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in the Journal of Astronomical Instrumentatio

Characterisation of the upper atmospheres of HAT-P-32 b, WASP-69 b, GJ 1214 b, and WASP-76 b through their He I triplet absorption

Characterisation of atmospheres undergoing photo-evaporation is key to understanding the formation, evolution, and diversity of planets. However, only a few upper atmospheres that experience this kind of hydrodynamic escape have been characterised. Our aim is to characterise the upper atmospheres of the hot Jupiters HAT-P-32 b and WASP-69 b, the warm sub-Neptune GJ 1214 b, and the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-76 b through high-resolution observations of their HeI triplet absorption. In addition, we also reanalyse the warm Neptune GJ 3470 b and the hot Jupiter HD 189733 b. We used a spherically symmetric 1D hydrodynamic model coupled with a non-local thermodynamic equilibrium model. Comparing synthetic absorption spectra with observations, we constrained the main parameters of the upper atmosphere of these planets and classify them according to their hydrodynamic regime. Our results show that HAT-P-32 b photo-evaporates at (130$\pm$70)$\times$10$^{11}$ gs$^{-1}$ with a hot (12 400$\pm$2900 K) upper atmosphere; WASP-69 b loses its atmosphere at (0.9$\pm$0.5)$\times$10$^{11}$ gs$^{-1}$ and 5250$\pm$750 K; and GJ 1214 b, with a relatively cold outflow of 3750$\pm$750 K, photo-evaporates at (1.3$\pm$1.1)$\times$10$^{11}$ gs$^{-1}$. For WASP-76 b, its weak absorption prevents us from constraining its temperature and mass-loss rate significantly; we obtained ranges of 6000-17 000\,K and 23.5$\pm$21.5$\times$10$^{11}$ gs$^{-1}$. Our reanalysis of GJ 3470 b yields colder temperatures, 3400$\pm$350 K, but practically the same mass-loss rate as in our previous results. Our reanalysis of HD 189733 b yields a slightly higher mass-loss rate, (1.4$\pm$0.5)$\times$10$^{11}$ gs$^{-1}$, and temperature, 12 700$\pm$900 K compared to previous estimates. Our results support that photo-evaporated outflows tend to be very light

Atmospheric characterization of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-33b: Detection of Ti and V emission lines and retrieval of a broadened line profile

Ultra-hot Jupiters are highly irradiated gas giant exoplanets on close-in orbits around their host stars. We analyzed high-resolution spectra from CARMENES, HARPS-N, and ESPaDOnS taken over eight observation nights to study the emission spectrum of WASP-33b and draw conclusions about its atmosphere. By applying the cross-correlation technique, we detected the spectral signatures of Ti I, V I, and a tentative signal of Ti II for the first time via emission spectroscopy. These detections are an important finding because of the fundamental role of Ti- and V-bearing species in the planetary energy balance. Moreover, we assessed and confirm the presence of OH, Fe I, and Si I from previous studies. The spectral lines are all detected in emission, which unambiguously proves the presence of an inverted temperature profile in the planetary atmosphere. By performing retrievals on the emission lines of all the detected species, we determined a relatively weak atmospheric thermal inversion extending from approximately 3400 K to 4000 K. We infer a supersolar metallicity close to 1.5 dex in the planetary atmosphere, and find that its emission signature undergoes significant line broadening with a Gaussian FWHM of about 4.5 km/s. Also, we find that the atmospheric temperature profile retrieved at orbital phases far from the secondary eclipse is about 300 K to 700 K cooler than that measured close to the secondary eclipse, which is consistent with different day- and nightside temperatures. Moreover, retrievals performed on the emission lines of the individual chemical species lead to consistent results, which gives additional confidence to our retrieval method. Increasing the number of species included in the retrieval and expanding the set of retrieved atmospheric parameters will further advance our understanding of exoplanet atmospheres.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs. Line-by-line sensitivity to activity in M dwarfs

Radial velocities (RVs) measured from high-resolution stellar spectra are routinely used to detect and characterise orbiting exoplanet companions. The different lines present in stellar spectra are created by several species, which are non-uniformly affected by stellar variability features such as spots or faculae. Stellar variability distorts the shape of the spectral absorption lines from which precise RVs are measured, posing one of the main problems in the study of exoplanets. In this work we aim to study how the spectral lines present in M dwarfs are independently impacted by stellar activity. We used CARMENES optical spectra of six active early- and mid-type M dwarfs to compute line-by-line RVs and study their correlation with several well-studied proxies of stellar activity. We are able to classify spectral lines based on their sensitivity to activity in five M dwarfs displaying high levels of stellar activity. We further used this line classification to compute RVs with activity-sensitive lines and less sensitive lines, enhancing or mitigating stellar activity effects in the RV time series. For specific sets of the least activity-sensitive lines, the RV scatter decreases by ~ 2 to 5 times the initial one, depending on the star. Finally, we compare these lines in the different stars analysed, finding the sensitivity to activity to vary from star to star. Despite the high density of lines and blends present in M dwarf stellar spectra, we find that a line-by-line approach is able to deliver precise RVs. Line-by-line RVs are also sensitive to stellar activity effects, and they allow for an accurate selection of activity-insensitive lines to mitigate activity effects in RV. However, we find stellar activity effects to vary in the same insensitive lines from star to star.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&

Discriminating between hazy and clear hot-Jupiter atmospheres with CARMENES

Context: Relatively large radii of some hot Jupiters observed in the ultraviolet (UV) and blue-optical are generally interpreted to be due to Rayleigh scattering by high-altitude haze particles. However, the haze composition and its production mechanisms are not fully understood, and observational information is still limited. Aims: We aim to study the presence of hazes in the atmospheres of HD 209458 b and HD 189733 b with high spectral resolution spectra by analysing the strength of water vapour cross-correlation signals across the red optical and near-infrared wavelength ranges. Methods: A total of seven transits of the two planets were observed with the CARMENES spectrograph at the 3.5 m Calar Alto telescope. Their Doppler-shifted signals were disentangled from the telluric and stellar contributions using the detrending algorithm SYSREM. The residual spectra were subsequently cross-correlated with water vapour templates at 0.70-0.96 $\mu$m to measure the strength of the water vapour absorption bands. Results: The optical water vapour bands were detected at $5.2 \sigma$ in HD 209458 b in one transit, whereas no evidence of them was found in four transits of HD 189733 b. Therefore, the relative strength of the optical water bands compared to those in the near-infrared were found to be larger in HD 209458 b than in HD 189733 b. Conclusions: We interpret the non-detection of optical water bands in the transmission spectra of HD 189733 b, compared to the detection in HD 209458 b, to be due to the presence of high-altitude hazes in the former planet, which are largely absent in the latter. This is consistent with previous measurements with the Hubble Space Telescope. We show that currently available CARMENES observations of hot Jupiters can be used to investigate the presence of haze extinction in their atmospheres.Comment: 13 pages; accepted for publication in A&

The CARMENES search for exoplanets around M dwarfs -- Planet occurrence rates from a subsample of 71 stars

The CARMENES exoplanet survey of M dwarfs has obtained more than 18 000 spectra of 329 nearby M dwarfs over the past five years as part of its guaranteed time observations (GTO) program. We determine planet occurrence rates with the 71 stars from the GTO program for which we have more than 50 observations. We use injection-and-retrieval experiments on the radial-velocity (RV) time series to measure detection probabilities. We include 27 planets in 21 planetary systems in our analysis. We find 0.06+0.04-0.03 giant planets (100 M_Earth < M_pl sin i < 1000 M_Earth) per star in periods of up to 1000 d, but due to a selection bias this number could be up to a factor of five lower in the whole 329-star sample. The upper limit for hot Jupiters (orbital period of less than 10 d) is 0.03 planets per star, while the occurrence rate of planets with intermediate masses (10 M_Earth < M_pl sin i < 100 M_Earth) is 0.18+0.07-0.05 planets per star. Less massive planets with 1 M_Earth < M_pl sin i < 10 M_Earth are very abundant, with an estimated rate of 1.32+0.33-0.31 planets per star for periods of up to 100 d. When considering only late M dwarfs with masses M_star < 0.34 M_sol, planets more massive than 10 M_Earth become rare. Instead, low-mass planets with periods shorter than 10 d are significantly overabundant. For orbital periods shorter than 100 d, our results confirm the known stellar mass dependences from the Kepler survey: M dwarfs host fewer giant planets and at least two times more planets with M_pl sin i < 10 M_Earth than G-type stars. In contrast to previous results, planets around our sample of very low-mass stars have a higher occurrence rate in short-period orbits of less than 10 d. Our results demonstrate the need to take into account host star masses in planet formation models.Comment: 15 pages, 12 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic