Discovery of a weak magnetic field in the photosphere of the single giant Pollux

TL;DR

This study reports the first direct detection of a weak magnetic field in the giant star Pollux using advanced spectropolarimetric techniques, revealing potential magnetic activity and its relation to stellar evolution and exoplanet presence.

Contribution

The paper demonstrates the capability of ESPaDOnS and NARVAL instruments to measure sub-Gauss magnetic fields in giant stars and links magnetic variations to stellar and planetary characteristics.

Findings

Detected a weak magnetic field below one gauss in Pollux.

Observed magnetic field variations that may correlate with radial velocity changes.

Confirmed the effectiveness of high-precision spectropolarimetry for studying stellar magnetism.

Abstract

Aims: We observe the nearby, weakly-active single giant, Pollux, in order to directly study and infer the nature of its magnetic field. Methods: We used the new generation spectropolarimeters ESPaDOnS and NARVAL to observe and detect circular polarization within the photospheric absorption lines of Pollux. Our observations span 18 months from 2007-2009. We treated the spectropolarimetric data using the Least-Squares Deconvolution method to create high signal-to-noise ratio mean Stokes V profiles. We also measured the classical activity indicator S-index for the Ca H&K lines, and the stellar radial velocity (RV). Results: We have unambiguously detected a weak Stokes V signal in the spectral lines of Pollux, and measured the related surface-averaged longitudinal magnetic field Bl. The longitudinal field averaged over the span of the observations is below one gauss. Our data suggest variations of the longitudinal magnetic field, but no significant variation of the S-index. We observe variations of RV which are qualitatively consistent with the published ephemeris for a proposed exoplanet orbiting Pollux. The observed variations of Bl appear to mimic those of RV, but additional data for this relationship to be established. Using evolutionary models including the effects of rotation, we derive the mass of Pollux and we discuss its evolutionary status and the origin of its magnetic field. Conclusions: This work presents the first direct detection of the magnetic field of Pollux, and demonstrates that ESPaDOnS and NARVAL are capable of obtaining sub-G measurements of the surface-averaged longitudinal magnetic field of giant stars, and of directly studying the relationships between magnetic activity, stellar evolution and planet hosting of these stars.