Seismological studies of ZZ Ceti stars. I. The model grid and the application to individual stars

TL;DR

This paper develops a comprehensive model grid for ZZ Ceti stars and demonstrates how seismology can effectively determine their internal structure and evolutionary status.

Contribution

It introduces a new approach for seismological analysis using observed amplitude weights and external parameters, applied to five representative ZZ Ceti stars.

Findings

Seismology provides strong insights into stellar structure.

The model grid accurately matches observed pulsation modes.

The method improves parameter estimation for white dwarf stars.

Abstract

We calculate and explore an extensive adiabatic model grid for pulsating white dwarfs with H dominated atmospheres, the ZZ Ceti stars. We also compared the computed modes with the observed ones for five ZZ Ceti stars that are a representative sample of the whole class of pulsators. We describe our new approach for seismological studies, using the relative observed amplitudes to give weights for the periods in the fit and the external mass and temperature determinations as a guide. Our seismological study is clear evidence that seismology is indeed a powerful tool in the study of stellar structure and evolution.