A Metallicity Study of F, G, K, and M Dwarfs in the Coma Berenices Open Cluster from the APOGEE Survey

We present a study of metallicities in a sample of main-sequence stars with spectral types M, K, G, and F (T (eff) similar to 3200-6500K and log g similar to 4.3-5.0 dex) belonging to the solar neighborhood young open cluster Coma Berenices. Metallicities were determined using the high-resolution (R = lambda/Delta lambda similar to 22,500) NIR spectra (lambda 1.51-lambda 1.69 mu m) of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV APOGEE survey. Membership to the cluster was confirmed using previous studies in the literature along with APOGEE radial velocities and Gaia DR2. An LTE analysis using plane-parallel MARCS model atmospheres and the APOGEE DR16 line list was adopted to compute synthetic spectra and derive atmospheric parameters (T (eff) and log g) for the M dwarfs and metallicities for the sample. The derived metallicities are near-solar and are homogeneous at the level of the expected uncertainties, in particular when considering stars from a given stellar class. The mean metallicity computed for the sample of G, K, and M dwarfs is [Fe/H] = +0.04 +/- 0.02 dex; however, the metallicities of the F-type stars are slightly lower, by about 0.04 dex, when compared to cooler and less massive members. Models of atomic diffusion can explain this modest abundance dip for the F dwarfs, indicating that atomic diffusion operates in Coma Berenices stars. The [Fe/H] dip occurs in nearly the same effective temperature range as that found in previous analyses of the lithium and beryllium abundances in Coma Berenices.

Automated summary

The study investigated metallicities in main-sequence stars of the young open cluster Coma Berenices using high-resolution NIR spectra, finding that metallicities are near-solar and homogeneous within the same stellar class. F-type stars showed slightly lower metallicities compared to cooler members, with atomic diffusion potentially playing a role. This dip in [Fe/H] occurred in a similar effective temperature range as seen in previous lithium and beryllium abundance analyses in the cluster.