A non-local thermodynamical equilibrium line formation for neutral and singly ionized titanium in model atmospheres of reference A–K stars

Abstract

We construct a comprehensive model atom for TiI-II using more than 3600 measured and predicted energy levels of TiI and 1800 energy levels of TiII, and quantum mechanical photoionisation cross-sections. Non-local thermodynamical equilibrium (NLTE) line formation for the two ions of titanium is treated through a wide range of spectral types from A to K, including metal-poor stars with [Fe/H] down to -2.6 dex. NLTE leads to systematically depleted total absorption in the TiI lines and to positive abundance corrections. The magnitude of NLTE abundance corrections is smaller compared to the available literature data for the cool (FGK type) atmospheres. NLTE leads to strengthened TiII lines and to negative NLTE abundance corrections. For the first time, we performed the NLTE calculations for TiI-II in the 6500 K < Teff < 13000 K range. The deviations from LTE grow towards higher effective temperature. For four A type stars we derived the NLTE and LTE abundances from lines of TiI and TiII. In LTE an abundance discrepancy of up to 0.22 dex was obtained between TiI and TiII, and it vanishes in NLTE. For other four A-B stars, with only TiII lines observed, NLTE leads to smaller line-to-line scatter compared to LTE. An efficiency of inelastic TiI + HI collisions was empirically estimated from analysis of TiI and TiII lines in 17 cool stars in a wide metallicity range -2.6 < [Fe/H] < 0.0. Consistent NLTE abundances from lines of TiI and TiII were obtained applying classical Drawinian rates for the stars with log g > 4.1, and neglecting inelastic collisions with HI for the VMP giant HD 122563. For the very metal-poor turn-off stars ([Fe/H] < -2 and log g < 4.1), the abundance difference TiI-TiII was obtained to be positive already in LTE and it increases in NLTE. The accurate collisional data for TiI and TiII are desired to find a clue to this problem.