Lithium-rich stars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of 23 lithium-rich evolved stars from SDSS data, expanding understanding of lithium enrichment in post-main-sequence stars and highlighting the need for further investigation into the processes involved.

Contribution

It presents a new sample of lithium-rich stars across various evolutionary stages, confirmed with high-resolution spectroscopy, providing valuable data for studying lithium enrichment mechanisms.

Findings

23 lithium-rich post-main-sequence stars identified

Stars span a broad range of masses and evolutionary phases

Highlights the unclear process of lithium preservation or production

Abstract

We report the discovery of 23 lithium-rich post-main-sequence stars, identified from moderate-resolution SDSS spectroscopy and confirmed with high-resolution spectra taken at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope. These new Li-rich stars cover a broad range in mass and evolutionary phase, including bright giants and post-AGB stars. The process responsible for preserving or producing excess lithium in a small fraction of evolved stars remains unclear.