Friday, June 13 - Plenary Session

Name:  Jacqueline Faherty

Affiliation:  Carnegie Institution of Washington

Title:  Young Brown Dwarfs at the Exoplanet Mass Boundary

Abstract:
The observable properties of the current collection of directly imaged exoplanets and juvenile age (10-150 Myr) brown dwarfs show striking similarities. From triangular shaped H band to extremely red infrared colors and peculiar luminosity trends, there is useful overlap between the physical properties of the populations. All evidence to date implies that they should be studied in concert. In this talk I will present the photometric, luminosity and spectral sequences of the brown dwarf and exoplanet members of nearby young moving groups (Beta Pictoris--~20Myr--, Tucana Horlogium--~30Myr--, and AB Doradus--~100 Myr-- specifically). I will discuss the diversity among objects of the same age and spectral type, focusing on those that approach or exceed the classic exoplanet mass boundary. I will discuss how the red extent of the near and mid-infrared colors, the variations in the behavior of spectral features and the scatter in bolometric luminosity within each group indicate critical differences in atmosphere conditions and temperatures of newly assigned members. I will also discuss the potential of differentiating formation mechanisms for brown dwarfs and exoplanets by examining the mass functions of individual groups. http://goo.gl/rwShmX