Publications
of the
MPIfR
Optical & Infrared
Interferometry Group
T. Preibisch, G. Weigelt, and H.
Zinnecker:
Multiplicity of massive stars
in
IAU Symp. 200
The formation of binary stars,
H. Zinnecker & B. Mathieu (eds.), ASP Conf.Ser., p. 69-78 (2001)
Abstract.
We discuss the observed multiplicity of massive stars and implications
on
theories of massive star formation. After a short summary of the
literature
on massive star multiplicity, we focus on the O- and
B-type stars in the Orion Nebula Cluster, which constitute a homogenous
sample of very young massive stars. 13 of these stars have recently
been the targets of a bispectrum speckle interferometry survey
for companions. Considering the visual and also the known spectroscopic
companions of these stars, the total number of companions is at least
14.
Extrapolation with correction for the unresolved systems
suggests that there are at least 1.5 and perhaps as much as 4
companions per
primary star on average. This number is clearly higher than the mean
number of ~0.5 companions per primary star found for the
low-mass stars in the general field population and also in the Orion
Nebula
cluster. This suggests that a different mechanism is at work in the
formation
of high-mass multiple systems in the dense Orion
Nebula cluster than for low-mass stars.
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