Hunting for Young and Cool Gas Giants

Search for cool giant exoplanets around young and nearby stars - VLT/NaCo near-infrared phase-coronagraphic and differential imaging

Authors:

Maire et al

Abstract:

Context. Spectral differential imaging (SDI) is part of the observing strategy of current and future high-contrast imaging instruments. It aims to reduce the stellar speckles preventing the detection of cool planets, using in/out methane-band images. It attenuates the signature of off-axis companions to the star, like angular differential imaging (ADI). However, this attenuation is dependent on the spectral properties of the low-mass companions we are searching for. The implications of this particularity on the estimation of the detection limits have been poorly explored so far. Aims. We perform an imaging survey to search for cool (Teff<1000-1300 100="" 10="" 16="" 200="" 25="" 30="" 5-10="" 65="" a="" account="" aco.="" adi="" age="" aim="" also="" and="" any="" argue="" as="" assess="" at="" au.="" au="" be="" because="" better="" beyond="" bias.="" broken="" cannot="" case="" close-in="" close="" companions.="" conclusions.="" constraints.="" contrary="" converted="" cool="" coronagraph="" corresponds="" d="" data="" degeneracies="" detect="" determine="" differential="" directly="" do="" doing="" employ="" flux="" for="" giant="" have="" images.="" in="" instead="" into="" is="" it="" k="" limits.="" limits="" mass="" may="" method="" methods.="" modes="" myr="" noise="" not="" observe="" of="" optimal="" pc="" performance.="" phase-mask="" photometric="" planets="" ratios="" regime="" represents="" residual="" results.="" results="" sample.="" sample="" sdi="" selected="" sensitive="" sensitivity="" separations="" single-band="" so="" stars="" survey="" taking="" that="" the="" this="" to="" use="" view="" vlt="" we="" which="" will="" with="">2. According to the BT-Settl model, this translates into Teff<800 and="" applied="" be="" better="" can="" characteristics="" data="" described="" dual-band="" expect="" filter="" here="" image="" imager="" interpretation="" irdis="" k.="" methods="" more="" of="" p="" performance="" quality.="" sphere.="" suitable="" thanks="" the="" to="" we="" with="">