Context.We have obtained precise radial velocities for a sample of 373 G and K type giants at Lick Observatory regularly over more than 12 years. Planets have been identified around 15 of these giant stars, and an additional 20 giant stars host planet candidates. Aims. We are interested in the occurrence rate of substellar companions around giant stars as a function of stellar mass and metallicity. We probe the stellar mass range from approximately 1 to beyond 3 M , which is not being explored by main-sequence samples. Methods. We fit the giant planet occurrence rate as a function of stellar mass and metallicity with a Gaussian and an exponential distribution, respectively. Results. We find strong evidence for a planet-metallicity correlation among the secure planet hosts of our giant star sample, in agreement with the one for main-sequence stars. However, the planet-metallicity correlation is absent for our sample of planet candidates, raising the suspicion that a good fraction of them might indeed not be planets despite clear periodicities in the radial velocities. Consistent with the literature results for subgiants, the giant planet occurrence rate increases in the stellar mass interval from 1 to 1.9 M . However, there is a maximum at a stellar mass of 1.9 +0.1 −0.5 M , and the occurrence rate drops rapidly for masses larger than 2.5-3.0 M . We do not find any planets around stars more massive than 2.7 M , although there are 113 stars with masses between 2.7 and 5 M in our sample (corresponding to a giant planet occurrence rate smaller than 1.6% at 68.3% confidence in that stellar mass bin). We also show that this result is not a selection effect related to the planet detectability being a function of the stellar mass. Conclusions. We conclude that giant planet formation or inward migration is suppressed around higher mass stars, possibly because of faster disk depletion coupled with a longer migration timescale.

Aims. In a follow-up investigation we present Zeeman-Doppler maps of the weak-lined T Tauri star (WTTS) V410 Tau. As a rapid rotating star and a typical WTTS the stellar surface of V410 Tau is accessible to surface imaging techniques and allows us to detect and reconstruct the major magnetic surface features on this pre-main sequence star. Methods. The polarized signals we are measuring are on the order of 10 −4 to 10 −3 and are hidden well below the noise level of a single observation. A new line profile reconstruction technique based on a singular value decomposition (SVD) allows us to extract the weak polarized line profiles (Stokes V) as well as the intensity profiles (Stokes I). One of the key features of the line profile reconstruction is that the SVD line profiles are amenable to radiative transfer modeling within our Zeeman-Doppler Imaging code iMap. The code also utilizes a new iterative regularization scheme which is independent of any additional surface constraints. To provide more stability a vital part of our inversion strategy is to invert both Stokes I and Stokes V profiles to simultaneously reconstruct the temperature and magnetic field surface distribution of V410 Tau. A new image-shear analysis is also implemented to allow the search for image and line profile distortions induced by a differential rotation of the star. Results. The magnetic field structure we obtain for V410 Tau shows a good spatial correlation with the surface temperature and is dominated by a strong field within the cool polar spot. The Zeeman-Doppler maps exhibit a large-scale organization of both polarities around the polar cap in the form of a twisted bipolar structure. The magnetic field reaches a value of almost 2 kG within the polar region but smaller fields are also present down to lower latitudes. The pronounced non-axisymmetric field structure and the nondetection of a differential rotation for V410 Tau supports the idea of an underlying α 2 -type dynamo, which is predicted for WTTS.

Context. The detection of trends or gradients in the transmission spectrum of extrasolar planets is possible with observations at very low spectral resolution. Transit measurements of sufficient accuracy using selected broad-band filters allow for an initial characterization of the atmosphere of the planet. Aims. We want to investigate the atmosphere of the hot Jupiter HAT-P-12b for an increased absorption at the very blue wavelength regions caused by scattering. Furthermore, we aim for a refinement of the transit parameters and the orbital ephemeris. Methods. We obtained time series photometry of 20 transit events and analyzed them homogeneously, along with eight light curves obtained from the literature. In total, the light curves span a range from 0.35 to 1.25 microns. During two observing seasons over four months each, we monitored the host star to constrain the potential influence of starspots on the derived transit parameters. Results. We rule out the presence of a Rayleigh slope extending over the entire optical wavelength range, a flat spectrum is favored for HAT-P-12b with respect to a cloud-free atmosphere model spectrum. A potential cause of such gray absorption is the presence of a cloud layer at the probed latitudes. Furthermore, in this work we refine the transit parameters, the ephemeris and perform a TTV analysis in which we found no indication for an unseen companion. The host star showed a mild non-periodic variability of up to 1%. However, no stellar rotation period could be detected to high confidence.

Context. Surface differential rotation and other global surface flows on magnetically active stars are among the observable manifestations of the underlying stellar dynamo. Therefore, these types of observations are important for stellar dynamo theory and useful constraints for solar dynamo studies as well. Aims. We revisit the active K1-giant component of the long-period RS CVn-type binary system σ Gem and its global surface flow pattern. Methods. We refine the differential rotation law from recovering the spot migration pattern. We apply a detailed cross-correlation technique to a unique set of 34 time-series Doppler images recovered using data from 1996−97. By increasing the number of the available cross-correlation function maps, we expect a more robust determination of the differential surface rotation law. In addition, we present a new time-series Doppler imaging study of σ Gem using our advanced surface reconstruction code iMap for a data set collected in 2006−07. Results. Results from the reprocessed cross-correlation study confirm that the star performs antisolar-type differential rotation with a surface shear α of −0.04 ± 0.01, i.e., almost a factor of two larger compared to the previously claimed value. We also confirm the evidence of a global poleward spot migration, with an average velocity of 0.21 ± 0.03 km s −1 , in accordance with theoretical predictions. From the new observations, we obtain three subsequent Doppler images. The time evolution of these images confirms the antisolar-type differential rotation of the same amount.