Contents of: VI/111/./abstract/WFORREST_1.abs

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 We propose to use ISOCAM to look for brown dwarfs which are members of
 the Hyades cluster.  Previous studies of the Hyades and similar young
 clusters have produced only ambiguous results to date.  The problem is
 two-fold.  For the youngest clusters (Taurus and Ophiuchus), the brown
 dwarfs are so young that their temperatures are high enough, >2500K,
 that it is easy to confuse them with field stars, especially if there
 may be some reddening from dust extinction.  The previous studies in
 the Hyades have been performed in the optical and near infrared (2.2
 microns).  These studies have located some candidate brown dwarf
 members.  However, even if ultimately it can be proven that these
 objects are true Hyades members, they have characteristics (luminosity
 and temperature) of objects just at the borderline between low mass
 stars and bona-fide brown dwarfs.  By employing the longer wavelength
 (7 microns) of ISOCAM, we will be sensitive to any brown dwarfs in the
 0.015 to 0.060 solar-mass range, which is inaccessible to the
 ground-based searches.  Furthermore, the temperatures of these objects
 will be so low, below 1500 K, that their identification as brown
 dwarfs will be unambiguous.  We estimate that a search of about 25
 hours will detect brown dwarfs, even if they are no more numerous than
 the known stellar Hyads and therefore comprise a small fraction of the
 mass of the Hyades.  Thus we will begin to explore the mass function
 of this cluster below 0.06 solar masses for the first time.