(Proposal ID) S13A-031

(PI) Nakajima, Tadashi

(Proposal Title)
High Resolution K-Band Spectroscopy of Selected M Dwarfs

(Abstract)
We propose to obtain high-resolution K-band spectra of selected M dwarfs to 
study stellar properties such as effective temperature and metallicity.  M 
dwarfs are under scrutiny as potential planet hosts. They have sufficiently 
low masses and small radii that exoplanets induce considerably larger reflex 
velocities and transit depths than an identical planet would around larger, 
more massive hosts. The low temperatures of M dwarfs imply short-period 
planets are in the habitable zone. However, due to the cool atmosphere, the 
characterization of M dwarfs at visible wavelengths has been rather difficult 
and the previously known stellar parameters have been rather crude. Recently a 
new method to use medium resolution K-band spectroscopy to determine the 
effective temperature and metallicity was devised. The purposes of this 
proposal is to examine the validity of the new method with a spectral 
resolution one order of magnitude higher and, if possible, to find a better 
method to determine the stellar properties.