Probability of Physical Association of 104 Blended Companions to \textit{Kepler} Objects of Interest Using Visible and Near-Infrared Adaptive Optics Photometry [EPA]

http://arxiv.org/abs/1609.09512


We determine probabilities of physical association for stars in blended Kepler Objects of Interest, and find that $14.5\%^{+3.8\%}_{-3.4\%}$ of companions within $\sim4\arcsec$ are consistent with being physically unassociated with their primary. This produces a better understanding of potential false positives in the Kepler catalog and will guide models of planet formation in binary systems. Physical association is determined through two methods of calculating multi-band photometric parallax using visible and near-infrared adaptive optics observation of 84 KOI systems with 104 contaminating companions within $\sim4\arcsec$. We find no evidence that KOI companions with separation of less than $1\arcsec$ are more likely to be physically associated than KOI companions generally. We also reinterpret transit depths for 94 planet candidates, and calculate that $2.6\% \pm 0.4\%$ of transits have $R > 15R_{\earth}$, which is consistent with prior modeling work.

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D. Atkinson, C. Baranec, C. Ziegler, et. al.
Mon, 3 Oct 16
16/47

Comments: 16 pages, 1 figure. Accepted for publication in AJ