Surface effects in solar-like oscillators

TL;DR

This paper reviews the causes of the surface effect in solar-like oscillators, discusses methods to correct it, and explores the use of 3D simulations to improve stellar models and understand surface effects across different stars.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive review of recent progress in modeling and correcting surface effects in solar-like oscillators, including new simulation approaches.

Findings

Methods for removing surface effects from mode frequencies.

Use of 3D radiation hydrodynamics simulations to predict surface effects.

Insights into how surface effects vary across different stellar types.

Abstract

Inaccurate modelling of the near-surface layers of solar models causes a systematic difference between modelled and observed solar mode frequencies. This difference---known as the "surface effect" or "surface term"---presumably also exists in other solar-like oscillators and must somehow be corrected to accurately relate mode frequencies to stellar model parameters. After briefly describing the various potential causes of surface effects, I will review recent progress along two different lines. First, various methods have been proposed for removing the surface effect from the mode frequencies and thereby fitting stellar models without the disproportionate influence of the inaccurate near-surface layers. Second, three-dimensional radiation hydrodynamics simulations are now being used to replace the near-surface layers of stellar models across a range of spectral types, leading to predictions of how some components of the surface effect vary between stars. Finally, I shall briefly discuss the future of the problem in terms of both modelling and observation.