Theoretical Predictions of Surface Light Element Abundances in Protostellar and Pre-Main Sequence Phase

Theoretical prediction of surface stellar abundances of light elements–lithium, beryllium, and boron–represents one of the most interesting open problems in astrophysics. As well known, several measurements of 7Li abundances in stellar atmospheres point out a disagreement between predictions and observations in different stellar evolutionary phases, rising doubts about the capability of present stellar models to precisely reproduce stellar envelope characteristics. The problem takes different aspects in the various evolutionary phases; the present analysis is restricted to protostellar and pre-Main Sequence phases. Light elements are burned at relatively low temperatures (T from ≈2 to ≈5 million degrees) and thus in the early evolutionary stages of a star they are gradually destroyed at different depths of stellar interior mainly by (p, α) burning reactions, in dependence on the stellar mass. Their surface abundances are strongly influenced by the nuclear cross sections, as well as by the extension toward the stellar interior of the convective envelope and by the temperature at its bottom, which depend on the characteristics of the star (mass and chemical composition) as well as on the energy transport in the convective stellar envelope. In recent years, a great effort has been made to improve the precision of light element burning cross sections. However, theoretical predictions surface light element abundance are challenging because they are also influenced by the uncertainties in the input physics adopted in the calculations as well as the efficiency of several standard and non-standard physical processes active in young stars (i.e. diffusion, radiative levitation, magnetic fields, rotation). Moreover, it is still not completely clear how much the previous protostellar evolution affects the pre-Main Sequence characteristics and thus the light element depletion. This paper presents the state-of-the-art of theoretical predictions for protostars and pre-Main Sequence stars and their light element surface abundances, discussing the role of (p, α) nuclear reaction rates and other input physics on the stellar evolution and on the temporal evolution of the predicted surface abundances.

Ionization potential depression and ionization balance in dense carbon plasma under solar and stellar interior conditions

Recent quantitative experiments on the ionization potential depression (IPD) in dense plasma show that the observational results are difficult to explain with the widely used analytical models for plasma screening. Here, we investigate the effect of plasma screening on the IPD and ionization balance of dense carbon plasma under solar and stellar interior conditions using our developed consistent nonanalytical model. The screening potential can be primarily attributed to the free electrons in the plasma and is determined by the microspace distribution of these free electrons. The ionization balance is determined by solving the Saha equation, including the effect of IPD. The predicted IPD and average ionization degree are larger than those obtained using the Stewart–Pyatt model for mass densities that are greater than 3.0 g cm−3. Under solar interior conditions, our results are in better agreement with the Ecker–Kröll model at electron temperatures and densities lower than 250 eV and 2.1 × 1023 cm−3 and in the best agreement with the ion-sphere model at 303 eV and 4.3 × 1023 cm−3. Finally, our results are compared with those obtained via a recent experiment on a CH-mixture plasma that has been compressed six times. The predicted average ionization degree of C in a CH mixture agrees better with the experiment than the Stewart–Pyatt and Thomas–Fermi models when the screening from free electrons contributed by hydrogen atoms is included. Our results provide useful information concerning the ionization balance and can be applied to investigate the opacity and equations of state for dense plasma under the solar and stellar interior conditions.

Asteroseismic investigation of 20 planet and planet-candidate host stars

ABSTRACT Planets and planet candidates are subjected to great investigation in recent years. In this study, we analyse 20 planet and planet-candidate host stars at different evolutionary phases. We construct stellar interior models of the host stars with the mesa e.volution code and obtain their fundamental parameters under influence of observational asteroseismic and non-asteroseismic constraints. Model mass range of the host stars is 0.74–1.55 $\rm M_{\odot }$. The mean value of the so-called large separation between oscillation frequencies and its variation about the minima shows the diagnostic potential of asteroseismic properties. Comparison of variations of model and observed large separations versus the oscillation frequencies leads to inference of fundamental parameters of the host stars. Using these parameters, we revise orbital and fundamental parameters of 34 planets and four planet candidates. According to our findings, radius range of the planets is 0.35–16.50 $\rm R_{{\oplus }}$. The maximum difference between the transit and revised radii occurs for Kepler-444b-f is about 25 per cent.

Including all the lines: data releases for spectra and opacities

I present a progress report on including all the lines in the line lists, including all the lines in the opacities, and including all the lines in the model atmosphere and spectrum synthesis calculations. The increased opacity will improve stellar atmosphere, pulsation, stellar interior, asteroseismology, nova, supernova, and other radiation-hydrodynamics calculations. At present I have produced atomic line data for computing opacities for 544 million lines for elements up through Zn. Of these, 2.11 million lines are between known energy levels so have good wavelengths for computing spectra. Work is continuing on heavier elements. I also report on using stellar spectra as the laboratory source for extending analyses to higher energy levels. Data for each ion and merged line lists are available on my website kurucz.harvard.edu .

Clumping in stellar winds and interiors

The uncertain clumping properties pose a major problem for the quantitative analysis and the modelling of hot star winds. New results suggest that also the outer envelopes of massive stars may be affected by clumping, with important consequences for their observable radii and ionising properties. In this talk I will discuss how clumping is incorporated in stellar interior and wind/atmosphere models, how current theoretical results compare with observations, and what we can learn from a combination of stellar interior models and winds.