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Description
We present a large-scale, volume-limited companion survey of 245 late-K to mid-M (K7-M6) dwarfs within 15pc. Infrared adaptive optics (AO) data were analysed from the Very Large Telescope, Subaru Telescope, Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, and MMT Observatory to detect close companions to the sample from ~1 to 100AU, while digitized wide-field archival plates were searched for wide companions from ~100 to 10000AU. With sensitivity to the bottom of the main sequence over a separation range of 3 to 10000AU, multiple AO and wide-field epochs allow us to confirm candidates with common proper motions, minimize background contamination, and enable a measurement of comprehensive binary statistics. We detected 65 comoving stellar companions and find a companion star fraction of 23.5+/-3.2 percent over the 3 au to 10000AU separation range. The companion separation distribution is observed to rise to a higher frequency at smaller separations, peaking at closer separations than measured for more massive primaries. The mass ratio distribution across the q=0.2-1.0 range is flat, similar to that of multiple systems with solar-type primaries. The characterization of binary and multiple star frequency for low-mass field stars can provide crucial comparisons with star-forming environments and hold implications for the frequency and evolutionary histories of their associated discs and planets.
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