The Curious Case of Elemental Abundance Differences in the Dual Hot Jupiter Hosts WASP-94AB

TL;DR

This study investigates elemental abundance differences in the binary star system WASP-94AB, both hosting hot Jupiters, revealing unique volatile depletion and refractory enhancement patterns that challenge previous findings.

Contribution

It presents the first detailed relative abundance analysis of a binary system with hot Jupiters, uncovering unusual elemental trends not seen in other similar systems.

Findings

Detected volatile depletion (~-0.02 dex) in WASP-94A relative to B

Observed refractory element enhancement (~0.01 dex) in WASP-94A

Identified abundance patterns differing from typical binary star systems

Abstract

Binary stars provide an ideal laboratory for investigating the potential effects of planet formation on stellar composition. Assuming the stars formed in the same environment/from the same material, any compositional anomalies between binary components might indicate differences in how material was sequestered in planets, or accreted by the star in the process of planet formation. We present here a study of the elemental abundance differences between WASP-94AB, a pair of stars that each host a hot Jupiter exoplanet. The two stars are very similar in spectral type (F8 and F9), and their ~2700 AU separation suggests their protoplanetary disks were likely not influenced by stellar interactions, but WASP-94Ab's orbit -- misaligned with the host star spin axis and likely retrograde -- points towards a dynamically active formation mechanism, perhaps different than that of WASP-94Bb, which is not misaligned and has nearly circular orbit. Based on our high-quality spectra and strictly relative abundance analysis, we detect a depletion of volatiles (~-0.02 dex, on average) and enhancement of refractories (~0.01 dex) in WASP-94A relative to B (standard errors are ~0.005 dex). This is different than every other published case of binary host star abundances, in which either no significant abundance differences are reported, or there is some degree of enhancement in all elements, including volatiles. Several scenarios that may explain the abundance trend are discussed, but none can be definitively accepted or rejected. Additional high-contrast imaging observations to search for companions that may be dynamically affecting the system, as well as a larger sample of binary host star studies, are needed to better understand the curious abundance trends we observe in WASP-94AB.