S stars and s-process in the Gaia era II. Constraining the luminosity of the third dredge-up with Tc-rich S stars

TL;DR

This study uses Gaia EDR3 data and detailed spectroscopic analysis to determine the luminosity and evolutionary status of Tc-rich S stars, confirming they are genuine TP-AGB stars and constraining the third dredge-up onset.

Contribution

It combines Gaia data, high-resolution spectra, and models to locate Tc-rich S stars in the HR diagram and compare their s-process abundances with nucleosynthesis predictions, advancing understanding of AGB evolution.

Findings

Tc-rich S stars are located at higher luminosities than the TDU onset.

Good agreement between observed s-process abundances and nucleosynthesis models.

Stars with higher [s/Fe] also show higher C/O ratios.

Abstract

S stars are late-type giants that are transition objects between M-type stars and carbon stars on the asymptotic giant branch (AGB). They are classified into two types: intrinsic or extrinsic, based on the presence or absence of technetium (Tc). The Tc-rich or intrinsic S stars are thermally-pulsing (TP-)AGB stars internally producing s-process elements (including Tc) which are brought to their surface via the third dredge-up (TDU). Tc-poor or extrinsic S stars gained their s-process overabundances via accretion of s-process-rich material from an AGB companion which has since turned into a dim white dwarf. Our goal is to investigate the evolutionary status of Tc-rich S stars by locating them in a Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram using the results of Gaia early Data Release 3 (EDR3). We combine the current sample of 13 Tc-rich stars with our previous studies of 10 Tc-rich stars to determine the observational onset of the TDU in the metallicity range [-0.7; 0]. We also compare our abundance determinations with dedicated AGB nucleosynthesis predictions. The stellar parameters are derived using an iterative tool which combines HERMES high-resolution spectra, accurate Gaia EDR3 parallaxes, stellar evolution models and tailored MARCS model atmospheres for S-type stars. Using these stellar parameters we determine the heavy-element abundances by line synthesis. In the HR diagram, the intrinsic S stars are located at higher luminosities than the predicted onset of the TDU. These findings are consistent with Tc-rich S stars being genuinely TP-AGB stars. The comparison of the derived s-process abundance profiles of our intrinsic S stars with the nucleosynthesis predictions provide an overall good agreement. Stars with highest [s/Fe] tend to have the highest C/O ratios.