Spectroscopic studies of DB white dwarfs: The instability strip of the pulsating DB (V777 HER) stars

We have secured optical spectra for the eight currently known variable DB, or V777 Her, stars. With the help of a new generation of synthetic spectra, spectroscopic effective temperatures are derived for these objects, as well as for 15 other DB or DBA stars above 20,000 K. We find that the location of the boundaries of the instability strip is sensitive to the atmospheric hydrogen abundance assumed for DB stars: the strip covers the range 22,400-27,800 K if atmospheres of pure helium are used and the range 21,800-24,700 K if undetectable traces of hydrogen are allowed for in the DB models. These determinations provide independent constraints for current seismological analyses of the V777 Her stars. More sensitive searches for weak hydrogen features in hot DB stars should help decide between the two temperature scales.