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Description
Spectroscopic observations represent a fundamental step in the physical characterization of stars and, in particular, in the precise location of stars in the HR diagram. Rotation is also a key parameter, impacting stellar properties and evolution, which modulates the interior and manifests itself on the surface of stars. To date, the lack of analysis based on large samples has prevented our understanding of the real impact of stellar parameters and rotation on the stellar evolution as well as on the behavior of surface abundances. The space missions, CoRoT and Kepler, are providing us with rotation periods for thousands of stars, thus enabling a robust assessment of the behavior of rotation for different populations and evolutionary stages. For these reasons, the follow-up programs are fundamental to increasing the returns of these space missions. An analysis that combines spectroscopic data and rotation/modulation periods obtained from these space missions provides the basis for establishing the evolutionary behavior of the angular momentum of solar-like stars at different evolutionary stages, and the relation of rotation with other relevant physical and chemical parameters. To support the computation and evolutionary interpretation of periods associated with the rotational modulation, oscillations, and variability of stars located in the CoRoT fields, we are conducting a spectroscopic survey for stars located in the fields already observed by the satellite. These observations allow us to compute physical and chemical parameters for our stellar sample. Using spectroscopic observations obtained with UVES/VLT and Hydra/Blanco, and based on standard analysis techniques, we computed physical and chemical parameters (T_eff_, log(g), [Fe/H], v_mic_, v_rad_, vsin(i), and A(Li)) for a large sample of CoRoT targets. We provide physical and chemical parameters for a sample comprised of 138 CoRoT targets. Our analysis shows the stars in our sample are located in different evolutionary stages, ranging from the main sequence to the red giant branch, and range in spectral type from F to K. The physical and chemical properties for the stellar sample are in agreement with typical values reported for FGK stars. However, we report three stars presenting abnormal lithium behavior in the CoRoT fields. These parameters allow us to properly characterize the intrinsic properties of the stars in these fields. Our results reveal important differences in the distributions of metallicity, T_eff_, and evolutionary status for stars belonging to different CoRoT fields, in agreement with results obtained independently from ground-based photometric surveys. Our spectroscopic catalog, by providing much-needed spectroscopic information for a large sample of CoRoT targets, will be of key importance for the successful accomplishment of several different programs related to the CoRoT mission, thus it will help further boost the scientific return associated with this space mission.
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