Characterization of the magnetic field of the Herbig Be star HD 200775★

Abstract

The origin of the magnetic fields observed in some intermediate-mass and high-mass mainsequence stars is still a matter of vigorous debate. The favoured hypothesis is a fossil field origin, in which the observed fields are the condensed remnants of magnetic fields present in the original molecular cloud from which the stars formed. According to this theory a few per cent of the pre-main-sequence (PMS) Herbig Ae/Be star should be magnetic with a magnetic topology similar to that of main-sequence intermediate-mass stars.