arXiv subjects

F. Marcadon

Publications and source records attributed to F. Marcadon.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

V446 Cephei: a $\beta$ Cep pulsator in a multiple system

$\beta$ Cep stars in eclipsing binary (EB) systems give us an opportunity to put observational constraints on their structure and stellar parameters. We present a comprehensive analysis of the $\beta$ Cep star in the EB V446 Cep, using \textit{TESS} photometry and HERMES spectra. We calculate the stellar and orbital parameters using light curve modelling and spectral disentangling. The EB has an orbital period of $3.808567 \pm 0.000012$ d and a mass ratio of $0.1550 \pm 0.0012$. We find the $\beta$ Cep star to have a mass of $10.68 \pm 0.06$ $\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$, a radius of $5.864 \pm 0.033$ $\mathrm{R}_{\odot}$, and a $T_{\rm eff}$ of $24220 \pm 180$ K. The secondary has a mass of $1.657 \pm 0.017$ $\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$, a radius of $1.530 \pm 0.014$ $\mathrm{R}_{\odot}$, and a $T_{\rm eff}$ of $9080 \pm 390$ K. We also extract the abundances of C, N, O, Mg, and Si for the $\beta$ Cep star, which are found to be consistent with galactic OB binaries. We identified 21 distinct pulsation frequencies, with the dominant mode at 10.24324 d$^{-1}$, which corresponds to a near-harmonic of the system's orbital frequency. The two stars in the EB have asynchronous rotation, with both stars rotating faster than the orbital frequency. We detect a companion to the EB using eclipse timing variations and period changes of the dominant pulsation frequency. We calculate the minimum mass of this tertiary companion to be $4.11 \pm 0.32$ $\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$ which is on an orbit of 2303$\pm$69 d around the EB. Using spectral energy distributions and MIST isochrones, we conclude that V446 Cep is either a co-evolving hierarchical 2+2 quadruple or a triple system where the third body is a compact object.

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arXiv2026

Finding the elusive RR Lyrae companions via speckle imaging

Despite their key role in astrophysics, the binary properties of RR Lyrae stars (RRL) remain almost completely unknown since only a single RRL is confirmed as belonging to a binary system. Finding companions to RRL is difficult since most of them will be at wider orbits, given that close orbits will likely ensue mass transfer disrupting the conditions to develop stellar pulsations. These wide orbits open the possibility that RRL companions may be more easily found by high-resolution imaging. We observed 81 RRL with the speckle interferometers Zorro and 'Alopeke at the Gemini telescopes, reaching the diffraction limit of $\sim$20 mas of these 8m-class telescopes, and therefore exploring a new parameter space around RRL. We have detected 10 newly identified companions around these 81 RRL, with projected separations between 20 AU to 220 AU. An analysis of the field contamination shows that all of these detected companions are most likely gravitationally bound binaries. From these observations we can estimate an RRL binary fraction higher than 12%, ruling out a binary fraction higher than 25% at the 99% confidence level. These numbers are significantly more elevated than previous estimations which were close to a binary fraction of only 1%, albeit derived with methods exploring a different parameter space. For RRL with thin disc kinematics, we find that the binary fraction is significantly lower, at around 6%, with a single thin disc RRL having a companion out of the 16 observed. The nature of the companions, found to be stars in the lower red giant branch and upper main sequence, is also studied via the measurement of the minimum light colors of the RRL, which appears as a useful method for the search and analysis of RRL in binary systems.

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arXiv2025

An in-depth study of brown dwarfs with TESS

The existence of a deficit of brown dwarfs (BDs) in close orbit around main-sequence stars is one of the most intriguing questions in stellar physics. This so-called BD desert may result from the transition between two different dominant formation processes occurring for different mass regimes. While the BD mass derived from radial-velocity measurements helps confirm the nature of the analyzed objects, the BD radius obtained from transits is important to better constrain the BD age, as BDs are believed to contract with age. Such objects with well-constrained parameters, although in small number, are of prime interest for deeper investigations of BD structure and chemical composition. The present document aims at presenting the first results of a search for BD transits among a sample of approximately 3300 host star candidates observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite during Cycle 6.

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arXiv2025

RX Gru: a short-period pre-main-sequence eclipsing binary with a distant circumbinary companion

We report the discovery of a new short-period pre-main-sequence eclipsing binary, RX Gru, orbited by a distant circumbinary companion. We characterized the system by analysing the photometric observations from the Solaris network, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, and the Super Wide Angle Search for Planets survey, combined with the radial velocities from four high-resolution spectrographs: HARPS, FEROS, CHIRON, and HRS. We derived the parameters of the eclipsing components, which are $M_{\rm Aa} = 1.004^{+0.027}_{-0.026}\,$M$_\odot$, $R_{\rm Aa} = 1.007\pm0.021\,$R$_\odot$, and $T_{\rm eff,Aa} = 5379\pm289\,$K for the primary, and $M_{\rm Ab} = 0.985^{+0.024}_{-0.025}\,$M$_\odot$, $R_{\rm Ab} = 1.024\pm0.023\,$R$_\odot$, and $T_{\rm eff,Ab} = 5322\pm278\,$K for the secondary. We determined the age of the system from the observed parameters using two evolution codes, MESA and Cesam2k20. We obtained an age of $\sim$28$\,$Myr, placing the two stars at the very end of the pre-main-sequence phase. We also derived the minimum mass and orbital period of the tertiary companion, which are found to be $M_{\rm B} = 89.0\pm3.5\,$M$_{\rm Jup}$ and $P_{\rm AB} = 23.79 ^{+0.10 }_{-0.25}\,$yr, respectively. We conclude that RX Gru consists of a tight inner binary composed of two twin components and an outer low-mass companion (a massive brown dwarf or a very low-mass star) in a relatively wide orbit, and we suggest that the system was formed via the dynamical unfolding mechanism coupled with the shared accretion of the circumbinary material by the binary components.

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arXiv2025

A comprehensive study of $\delta$ Scuti-type pulsators in eclipsing binaries: oscillating eclipsing Algols

Eclipsing double-lined spectroscopic binaries hosting $\delta$ Scuti-type pulsators offer a unique laboratory for simultaneously constraining stellar geometry and interior structure. In this study, we present a comprehensive analysis of five oscillating eclipsing Algol binaries. By combining high-precision, short-cadence TESS photometry with multi-epoch high-resolution spectroscopy, we derive precise stellar and orbital parameters. Frequency power spectra were obtained using residuals from binary modelling. We further investigate the evolutionary history of these systems using a grid of MESA binary evolution simulations. Our analysis suggests that the systems must have undergone either case A or case B mass transfer, with the primary components repositioned in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and now pulsating in the $\delta$ Scuti regime, while the cooler secondaries are underluminous and inflated, filling their Roche lobes. This study contributes to the growing catalog of well-characterised oEA systems and our understanding of the effects of mass-transfer on the fate of these short-period binaries.

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arXiv2024

Spectroscopy of Eclipsing Compact Hierarchical Triples I

Eclipsing Compact Hierarchical Triples (ECHTs) are systems with the tertiary star orbiting an eclipsing binary (EB) in an orbit of fewer than 1000 days. In a CHT, all three stars exist in a space less than 5 AU in separation. A low-mass CHT is an interesting case to understand multiple star and planet formation at such small scales. In this study, we combine spectroscopy and photometry to estimate the orbital, stellar and atmospheric parameters of stars in a sample of CHTs. Using the complete set of parameters we aim to constrain the metallicity and age of the systems. We use time-series spectroscopy to obtain radial velocities (RVs) and disentangled spectra. Using RV modelling, EB light curve modelling, and spectral analysis, we estimated the metallicities and temperatures. Using isochrone fitting, we constrain the ages of the system. We then combine observations of masses, outer eccentricities (e_2), orbital periods and age estimates of the systems from the literature. We compare the distributions of e_2, and tertiary mass ratio, q_3 = M_3/(M_1+M_2), for three different metallicity ranges and two ranges of age. We estimate masses, radii, temperatures, metallicities and age of 12 stars in 4 CHTs. The CHT CD-32 6459 shows signs of von Zeipel-Lidov-Kozai oscillations while CD-62 1257 can evolve to form a triple common envelope. The rest of the CHTs are old and have an M-dwarf tertiary. We find that the q_3 distribution for CHTs with sub-solar metallicity has a uniform distribution but the systems with solar and above-solar metallicity peak between 0.5 and 1. When dividing them according to their ages, we found the q_3 of old systems around 0.5. The eccentricity e_2 favours a value around 0.3 irrespective of metallicity or age. The distributions are biased by the lack of observations and observing methods and therefore call for more observations of low-mass CHT.

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arXiv2023

Solaris photometric survey: Search for circumbinary companions using eclipse timing variations

Eclipse timing variations (ETV) have been a successful tool for detecting circumbinary companions to eclipsing binaries (EB). While TESS and Kepler have been prolific for ETV searches, they sometimes can be limited by time and sky coverage which can be addressed by specialised ground-based ETV surveys. We present the initial results from the Solaris photometric survey which uses four 0.5m robotic telescopes in the southern hemisphere to look for circumbinary companions. We present the method of light curve extraction, detrending, and EB modelling using the observations from the Solaris network. Using these light curves we extract precise eclipse timing for 7 EB and look for companions using a Lomb-Scargle periodogram search. We find two possible periodic signals for the target GSC 08814-01026. With the system having strong activity, we check for the feasibility of orbital solutions at these two periods. We find that the 245 +/- 1 d period is due to an M-dwarf mass companion. This makes GSC 08814-01026 a candidate compact hierarchical triple system. The other periodic signal at 146 +/- 1 d is an artefact of stellar activity.

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arXiv2023

Evolution and Dynamics of Tight Triple Systems

Tight Triple Systems have stars in a hierarchical configuration with a third star orbiting the inner binary with a period of fewer than 1000 days. Such systems are important for understanding the formation and evolution of stars in multiple systems. Having a detached eclipsing binary (DEB) as one of its components allows us to obtain precise stellar and orbital parameters of these systems. We discuss the process to obtain accurate parameters of these systems using high-resolution spectroscopy, radial velocity measurements, and precise space-based photometry. This enables us to have a 3D geometrical picture as well as the metallicity, age, and evolutionary status of these systems.

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arXiv2023

Detached Eclipsing Binaries in Compact Hierarchical Triples: Triple-lined systems BD+44 2258 and KIC 06525196

Compact Hierarchical Triples (CHT) are systems with the tertiary star orbiting the inner binary in an orbit shorter than 1000 days. CHT with an eclipsing binary as its inner binary can help us extract a multitude of information about all three stars in the system. In this study, we use independent observational techniques to estimate the orbital, stellar, and atmospheric parameters of two triple-lined CHT: BD+442258 and KIC06525196. We find that the masses of stars in BD+442258 are $1.011\pm0.029 M_{\odot}$, $0.941\pm0.033 M_{\odot}$, and $0.907\pm0.065 M_{\odot}$ while in KIC06525196 the estimated masses are $1.0351\pm0.0055 M_{\odot}$, $0.9712\pm0.0039 M_{\odot}$, and $0.777\pm0.012 M_{\odot}$. Using spectral disentangling, we obtained individual spectra of all the stars and combined them with light curve modeling to obtain radii, metallicities, and temperatures. Using stellar evolution models from MESA, we constrain the log(age) of BD+442258 to be 9.89 and 9.49 for KIC06525196. Two stars in BD+442258 are found to be sub-giants while all three stars in KIC06525196 are main-sequence stars. We constrain the mutual inclinations to certain angles for BD+442258 and KIC06525196 using numerical integration. Integrating with tidal interaction schemes and stellar evolution models, we find that KIC06525196 is a stable system. But the inner binary of BD+442258 merges within 550 Myrs. The time of this merger is affected by the orientation of the tertiary, even rushing the collapse by 100 Myrs when the mutual inclination is close to 90 degrees.

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arXiv2020

Analysis of eclipsing binaries in multiple stellar systems: the case of V1200 Centauri

We present a new analysis of the multiple star V1200 Centauri based on the most recent observations for this system. We used the photometric observations from the Solaris network and the TESS telescope, combined with the new radial velocities from the CHIRON spectrograph and those published in the literature. We confirmed that V1200 Cen consists of a 2.5-day eclipsing binary orbited by a third body. We derived the parameters of the eclipsing components, which are $M_{Aa} = 1.393\pm0.018\,$M$_\odot$, $R_{Aa} = 1.407\pm0.014\,$R$_\odot$ and $T_{{\rm eff},Aa} = 6\,588\pm58\,$K for the primary, and $M_{Ab} = 0.863\,3\pm0.008\,1\,$M$_\odot$, $R_{Ab} = 1.154\pm0.014\,$R$_\odot$ and $T_{{\rm eff},Ab} = 4\,475\pm68\,$K for the secondary. Regarding the third body, we obtained significantly different results than previously published. The period of the outer orbit is found to be 180.4 days, implying a minimum mass $M_B = 0.871\pm0.020\,$M$_\odot$. Thus, we argue that V1200 Cen is a quadruple system with a secondary pair composed of two low-mass stars. Finally, we determined the ages of each eclipsing component using two evolution codes, namely MESA and CESTAM. We obtained ages of 16-18.5$\,$Myr and 5.5-7$\,$Myr for the primary and the secondary, respectively. In particular, the secondary appears larger and hotter than predicted at the age of the primary. We concluded that dynamical and tidal interactions occurring in multiples may alter the stellar properties and explain the apparent non-coevality of V1200 Centauri.

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arXiv2018

Asteroseismic and orbital analysis of the triple star system HD 188753 observed by Kepler

The NASA Kepler space telescope has detected solar-like oscillations in several hundreds of single stars, thereby providing a way to determine precise stellar parameters using asteroseismology. In this work, we aim to derive the fundamental parameters of a close triple star system, HD 188753, for which asteroseismic and astrometric observations allow independent measurements of stellar masses. We used six months of Kepler photometry available for HD 188753 to detect the oscillation envelopes of the two brightest stars. For each star, we extracted the individual mode frequencies by fitting the power spectrum using a maximum likelihood estimation approach. We then derived initial guesses of the stellar masses and ages based on two seismic parameters and on a characteristic frequency ratio, and modelled the two components independently with the stellar evolution code CESTAM. In addition, we derived the masses of the three stars by applying a Bayesian analysis to the position and radial-velocity measurements of the system. Based on stellar modelling, the mean common age of the system is $10.8 \pm 0.2\,$Gyr and the masses of the two seismic components are $M_A =$ $0.99 \pm 0.01\,M_\odot$ and $M_{Ba} =$ $0.86 \pm 0.01\,M_\odot$. From the mass ratio of the close pair, $M_{Bb}/M_{Ba} = 0.767 \pm 0.006$, the mass of the faintest star is $M_{Bb} =$ $0.66 \pm 0.01\,M_\odot$ and the total seismic mass of the system is then $M_{syst} =$ $2.51 \pm 0.02\,M_\odot$. This value agrees perfectly with the total mass derived from our orbital analysis, $M_{syst} =$ $2.51^{+0.20}_{-0.18}\,M_\odot$, and leads to the best current estimate of the parallax for the system, $\pi = 21.9 \pm 0.2\,$mas. In addition, the minimal relative inclination between the inner and outer orbits is $10.9^\circ \pm 1.5^\circ$, implying that the system does not have a coplanar configuration.

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arXiv2015

Asteroseismology of solar-type stars with K2

We present the first detections by the NASA K2 Mission of oscillations in solar-type stars, using short-cadence data collected during K2 Campaign\,1 (C1). We understand the asteroseismic detection thresholds for C1-like levels of photometric performance, and we can detect oscillations in subgiants having dominant oscillation frequencies around $1000\,\rm μHz$. Changes to the operation of the fine-guidance sensors are expected to give significant improvements in the high-frequency performance from C3 onwards. A reduction in the excess high-frequency noise by a factor of two-and-a-half in amplitude would bring main-sequence stars with dominant oscillation frequencies as high as ${\simeq 2500}\,\rm μHz$ into play as potential asteroseismic targets for K2.

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