Young giants of intermediate mass

Evidence of rotation and mixing^⋆

¹ GEPI, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, 5 place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon, France
e-mail: Linda.Lombardo@observatoiredeparis.psl.eu
² Department of Astronomy, University of Geneva, Chemin Pegasi 51, 1290 Versoix, Switzerland
³ IRAP, CNRS UMR 5277 and Université de Toulouse, 14 Avenue Edouard Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
⁴ Departamento de Ciencias Fisicas, Universidad Andres Bello, Fernandez Concha 700, Las Condes, Santiago, Chile
⁵ INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste, Via Tiepolo 11, 34143 Trieste, Italy
⁶ IFPU, Istitute for the Fundamental Physics of the Universe, Via Beirut, 2, 34151 Grignano, Trieste, Italy
⁷ INFN, Sezione di Trieste, Via A. Valerio 2, 34127 Trieste, Italy
⁸ Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università degli Studi di Bologna, Via Gobetti 93/2, 40129 Bologna, Italy
⁹ INAF – Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio di Bologna, Via Gobetti 93/3, 40129 Bologna, Italy

Received: 28 May 2021
Accepted: 24 September 2021

Abstract

Context. In the search of a sample of metal-poor bright giants using Strömgren photometry, we serendipitously found a sample of 26 young (ages younger than 1 Gyr) metal-rich giants, some of which have high rotational velocities.

Aims. We determined the chemical composition and rotational velocities of these stars in order to compare them with predictions from stellar evolution models. These stars where of spectral type A to B when on the main sequence, and we therefore wished to compare their abundance pattern to that of main-sequence A and B stars.

Methods. Stellar masses were derived by comparison of the position of the stars in the colour-magnitude diagram with theoretical evolutionary tracks. These masses, together with Gaia photometry and parallaxes, were used to derive the stellar parameters. We used spectrum synthesis and model atmospheres to determine chemical abundances for 16 elements (C, N, O, Mg, Al, Ca, Fe, Sr, Y, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, and Eu) and rotational velocities.

Results. The age-metallicity degeneracy can affect photometric metallicity calibrations. We identify 15 stars as likely binary stars. All stars are in prograde motion around the Galactic centre and belong to the thin-disc population. All but one of the sample stars present low [C/Fe] and high [N/Fe] ratios together with constant [(C+N+O)/Fe], suggesting that they have undergone CNO processing and first dredge-up. The observed rotational velocities are in line with theoretical predictions of the evolution of rotating stars.