No abstract

No abstract

We present an 8.5-hour simultaneous radio, X-ray, UV, and optical observation of the L dwarf binary 2MASSW J0746425+200032. We detect strong radio emission, dominated by short-duration periodic pulses at 4.86 GHz with P = 124.32 ± 0.11 min. The stability of the pulse profiles and arrival times demonstrates that they are due to the rotational modulation of a B ≈ 1.7 kG magnetic field. A quiescent non-variable component is also detected, likely due to emission from a uniform large-scale field. The Hα emission exhibits identical periodicity, but unlike the radio pulses it varies sinusoidally and is offset by exactly 1/4 of a phase. The sinusoidal variations require chromospheric emission from a large-scale field structure, with the radio pulses likely emanating from the magnetic poles. While both light curves can be explained by a rotating mis-aligned magnetic field, the 1/4 phase lag rules out a symmetric dipole topology since it would result in a phase lag of 1/2 (poloidal field) or zero (toroidal field). We therefore conclude that either (i) the field is dominated by a quadrupole configuration, which can naturally explain the 1/4 phase lag; or (ii) the Hα and/or radio emission regions are not trivially aligned with the field. Regardless of the field topology, we use the measured period along with the known rotation velocity (vsini ≈ 27 km s −1 ), and the binary orbital inclination (i ≈ 142 • ), to derive a radius for the primary star of 0.078 ± 0.010 R ⊙ . This is the first measurement of the radius of an L dwarf, and along with a mass of 0.085 ± 0.010 M ⊙ it provides a constraint on the mass-radius relation below 0.1 M ⊙ . We find that the radius is about 30% smaller than expected from theoretical models, even for an age of a few Gyr. The origin of this discrepancy is either a breakdown of the models at the bottom of the main sequence, or a significant mis-alignment between the rotational and orbital axes.

As part of our on-going investigation into the magnetic field properties of ultracool dwarfs, we present simultaneous radio, X-ray, and Hα observations of three M9.5-L2.5 dwarfs (BRI 0021-0214, LSR 060230.4+391059, and 2MASS J052338.2−140302). We do not detect X-ray or radio emission from any of the three sources, despite previous detections of radio emission from BRI 0021 and 2M0523−14. Steady and variable Hα emission are detected from 2M0523−14 and BRI 0021, respectively, while no Hα emission is detected from LSR 0602+39. Overall, our survey of nine M8-L5 dwarfs doubles the number of ultracool dwarfs observed in X-rays, and triples the number of L dwarfs, providing in addition the deepest limits to date, log(L X /L bol ) −5.With this larger sample we find the first clear evidence for a substantial reduction in X-ray activity, by about two orders of magnitude, from mid-M to mid-L dwarfs. We find that the decline in both X-rays and Hα roughly follows L X ,Hα /L bol ∝ 10 −0.4×(SP−M6) for SP M6. In the radio band, however, the luminosity remains relatively unchanged from M0 to L4, leading to a substantial increase in L rad /L bol . Our survey also provides the first comprehensive set of simultaneous radio/X-ray/Hα observations of ultracool dwarfs, and reveals a clear breakdown of the radio/X-ray correlation beyond spectral type M7, evolving smoothly from L ν,rad /L X ≈ 10 −15.5 to ∼ 10 −11.5 Hz −1 over the narrow spectral type range M7-M9. This breakdown reflects the substantial reduction in X-ray activity beyond M7, but its physical origin remains unclear since, as evidenced by the uniform radio emission, there is no drop in the field dissipation and particle acceleration efficiency. Based on the results of our survey, we conclude that a further investigation of magnetic activity in ultracool dwarfs will benefit from a two-pronged approach: multi-rotation observations of nearby known active sources, and a snapshot survey of a large sample within ∼ 50 pc to uncover rare flaring objects. 10 The FeH Zeeman broadening technique leads to fields of 3.9 kG for EV Lac, 2.9 kG for AD Leo, and > 3.9 kG for YZ CMi (Reiners & Basri 2007), while the ZDI technique leads to much weaker fields of 0.5 − 0.6 kG, 0.2 kG, and 0.55 kG for the three objects, respectively (Morin et al. 2008).

We present the first simultaneous, multiwavelength observations of an L dwarf, the L3.5 candidate brown dwarf 2MASS J00361617+1821104, conducted with the Very Large Array, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, and the Kitt Peak 4 m telescope. We detect strongly variable and periodic radio emission (P ¼ 3 hr) with a fraction of about 60% circular polarization. No X-ray emission is detected to a limit of L X /L bol P 2 ; 10 À5 , several hundred times below the saturation level observed in early M dwarfs. Similarly, we do not detect H emission to a limit of L H /L bol P 2 ; 10 À7 , the deepest for any L dwarf observed to date. The ratio of radio to X-ray luminosity is at least 4 orders of magnitude in excess of that observed in a wide range of active stars (including M dwarfs), providing the first direct confirmation that late-M and L dwarfs violate the radio/X-ray correlation. The radio emission is due to gyrosynchrotron radiation in a large-scale magnetic field of about 175 G, which is maintained on timescales longer than 3 yr. The detected 3 hr period may be due to (1) the orbital motion of a companion at a separation of about 5 stellar radii, similar to the configuration of RS CVn systems, (2) an equatorial rotation velocity of about 37 km s À1and an anchored, long-lived magnetic field, or (3) periodic release of magnetic stresses in the form of weak flares. In the case of orbital motion, the magnetic activity may be induced by the companion, possibly explaining the unusual pattern of activity and the long-lived signal. We conclude that fully convective stars can maintain a large-scale and stable magnetic field, but the lack of X-ray and H emission indicates that the atmospheric conditions are markedly different than in early-type stars and even M dwarfs. Similar observations are therefore invaluable for probing both the internal and external structure of low-mass stars and substellar objects, and for providing constraints on dynamo models.