Abundance Analysis of Chemically Depleted Post-AGB/Post-RGB Binaries with Faint Discs

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohorian, Maksym, Kamath, Devika, Menon, Meghna, Van Winckel, Hans, Jian, Mingjie, Amarsi, Anish M., Andrych, Kateryna
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866914253544357888
author Mohorian, Maksym
Kamath, Devika
Menon, Meghna
Van Winckel, Hans
Jian, Mingjie
Amarsi, Anish M.
Andrych, Kateryna
author_facet Mohorian, Maksym
Kamath, Devika
Menon, Meghna
Van Winckel, Hans
Jian, Mingjie
Amarsi, Anish M.
Andrych, Kateryna
contents Post-AGB and post-RGB binaries with stable circumbinary discs provide key insights into late stellar and disc evolution, revealing how binary interactions shape disc structure and stellar surface composition. A defining trait of such systems is the observed underabundance of refractory elements in the stellar photosphere relative to volatile elements -- photospheric chemical depletion -- resulting from the star accreting volatile-rich circumstellar gas. In this study, we investigated the link between photospheric depletion and disc evolution by focusing on post-AGB/post-RGB binaries with low infrared excess (hereafter ``faint disc'' targets). We analysed high-resolution optical spectra from HERMES/Mercator and UVES/VLT for 6 Galactic and 2 LMC targets. Using \texttt{E-iSpec}, we homogeneously derived atmospheric parameters and chemical abundances of 29 elements from carbon to europium, and included NLTE corrections for 15 elements from carbon to barium that we calculated using pySME and pre-computed grids of departure coefficients. All targets exhibit `saturated' depletion patterns, which we characterised using two-piece linear fits defined by three parameters: initial metallicity ([M/H]$_0$), turn-off temperature ($T_{\rm turn-off}$), and depletion scale ($\nabla_{\rm 100 K}$). Among several findings, we highlight the bimodal distribution of $T_{\rm turn-off}$ in faint disc targets, which allows classification into two subgroups analogous to full discs with continuous, optically thick dust ($T_{\rm turn-off}$ > 1 100 K), and transition discs with inner clearing ($T_{\rm turn-off}$ < 1 100 K). Our results imply that faint disc targets likely represent the final stages of disc dissipation, highlighting the diversity of depletion profiles, the complexity of disc-binary interactions, and the need to understand the rarity and evolution of faint disc systems.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_16691
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Abundance Analysis of Chemically Depleted Post-AGB/Post-RGB Binaries with Faint Discs
Mohorian, Maksym
Kamath, Devika
Menon, Meghna
Van Winckel, Hans
Jian, Mingjie
Amarsi, Anish M.
Andrych, Kateryna
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Post-AGB and post-RGB binaries with stable circumbinary discs provide key insights into late stellar and disc evolution, revealing how binary interactions shape disc structure and stellar surface composition. A defining trait of such systems is the observed underabundance of refractory elements in the stellar photosphere relative to volatile elements -- photospheric chemical depletion -- resulting from the star accreting volatile-rich circumstellar gas. In this study, we investigated the link between photospheric depletion and disc evolution by focusing on post-AGB/post-RGB binaries with low infrared excess (hereafter ``faint disc'' targets). We analysed high-resolution optical spectra from HERMES/Mercator and UVES/VLT for 6 Galactic and 2 LMC targets. Using \texttt{E-iSpec}, we homogeneously derived atmospheric parameters and chemical abundances of 29 elements from carbon to europium, and included NLTE corrections for 15 elements from carbon to barium that we calculated using pySME and pre-computed grids of departure coefficients. All targets exhibit `saturated' depletion patterns, which we characterised using two-piece linear fits defined by three parameters: initial metallicity ([M/H]$_0$), turn-off temperature ($T_{\rm turn-off}$), and depletion scale ($\nabla_{\rm 100 K}$). Among several findings, we highlight the bimodal distribution of $T_{\rm turn-off}$ in faint disc targets, which allows classification into two subgroups analogous to full discs with continuous, optically thick dust ($T_{\rm turn-off}$ > 1 100 K), and transition discs with inner clearing ($T_{\rm turn-off}$ < 1 100 K). Our results imply that faint disc targets likely represent the final stages of disc dissipation, highlighting the diversity of depletion profiles, the complexity of disc-binary interactions, and the need to understand the rarity and evolution of faint disc systems.
title Abundance Analysis of Chemically Depleted Post-AGB/Post-RGB Binaries with Faint Discs
topic Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.16691