Abstract
The detection of near-infrared (NIR) excess at the position of a star can indicate either a substellar companion or a disk around the respective star. In this work we probed whether a 2.5σ H -band flux enhancement at the position of the isolated neutron star RX J0806.4–4123 can be confirmed at another NIR wavelength. We observed RXJ0806.4–4123 in the J -band with Gemini South equipped with FLAMINGOS-2. There was no significant detection of a J -band source at the neutron star position. However, similarly to the H -band we found a very faint (1.4σ) flux enhancement with a nominal magnitude of J = 24.8 ± 0.5. The overall NIR-detection significance is 3.1σ. If real, this emission is too bright to come from the neutron star alone. Deeper near-infrared observations are necessary to confirm or refute the potential NIR excess. The confirmation of such NIR excess could imply that there is a substellar companion or a disk around RXJ0806.4–4123.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 576-580 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Astronomische Nachrichten |
Volume | 337 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 1 2016 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science