Lithuim in Very Low-Mass Stars in the Pleiades

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Abstract

High-resolution, Keck Telescope echelle observations from 630 nm to 850 nm of seven Pleiads with spectral types from M5 to M6.5 reveal rather rapid rotation, with an average v sin i ~ 52 km s(-1) , and chromospheric activity in Hα emission. The activity in these stars is not any stronger than that of other Pleiades low-mass stars, despite the expected high contrast of Hα with their cool photospheres and their rapid rotation. This shows that the ``levelling off'' of Hα equivalent widths previously noted in low-mass stars in young clusters is not related to the conventional rotation-activity connection. None of the stars previously categorized as brown dwarf candidates have lithium signatures in their spectra. They are, therefore, very low-mass stars and not brown dwarfs. However, two stars, HHJ 339 and HHJ 430, 1 and 2 magnitudes above the Pleiades zero-age main sequence, do show absorption due to Li 1 at 670.8 nm and in the subordinate feature at 812.6 nm. These two stars are also rotating very rapidly. These facts strongly suggest that these stars are rather young. Their proper motions and radial velocities agree with those measured for the Pleiades as a whole. We discuss various explanations for these stars, none of which is completely satisfactory. In one scenario they represent very late star formation in the Pleiades cluster (implying a huge range in the ages of Pleiads). This seems unpalatable given the lack of matter dense enough to form stars in the Pleiades at present. Another possibility is that these stars formed in a nearby, more recent star formation site and drifted into the Pleiades. Although the cluster recently passed through a clump of young Taurus stars, we do not see how it could ``accrete'' two of them. In our most feasible explanation, we posit that a cloud which was a member of the ``Pleiades Supercluster'' recently formed stars, which are now scattered between us and the Pleiades. HHJ 339 and HHJ 430 could be members of this group whose motion has now brought them near the older open star cluster.

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