On the incidence of \textit{WISE} infrared excess among solar analog, twin and sibling stars

TL;DR

This study investigates infrared excesses in a sample of solar analog, twin, and sibling stars using WISE data, finding a small percentage with warm dust indicative of circumstellar material similar to our asteroid belt.

Contribution

It provides the first systematic analysis of IR excess among these star groups, confirming previous findings and expanding understanding of circumstellar dust prevalence.

Findings

4.1% of solar analogs show IR excess

Infrared excesses correspond to asteroid belt-like dust temperatures

No IR excess detected in solar twins, suggesting rarity or limitations

Abstract

This study presents a search for IR excess in the 3.4, 4.6, 12 and 22 $\mu$m bands in a sample of 216 targets, composed of solar sibling, twin and analog stars observed by the \textit{WISE} mission. In general, an infrared excess suggests the existence of warm dust around a star. We detected 12 $\mu$m and/or 22 $\mu$m excesses at the 3$\sigma$ level of confidence in five solar analog stars, corresponding to a frequency of 4.1 $\%$ of the entire sample of solar analogs analyzed, and in one out of 29 solar sibling candidates, confirming previous studies. The estimation of the dust properties shows that the sources with infrared excesses possess circumstellar material with temperatures that, within the uncertainties, are similar to that of the material found in the asteroid belt in our solar system. No photospheric flux excess was identified at the W1 (3.4 $\mu$m) and W2 (4.6 $\mu$m) \textit{WISE} bands, indicating that, in the majority of stars of the present sample, no detectable dust is generated. Interestingly, among the sixty solar twin stars analyzed in this work, no \textit{WISE} photospheric flux excess was detected. However, a null-detection excess does not necessarily indicate the absence of dust around a star because different causes, including dynamic processes and instrument limitations, can mask its presence.