Robust detection of quasi-periodic variability: HAWK-I mini survey of late-T dwarfs

We present HAWK-I J-band light curves of five late-type T dwarfs (T6.5–T7.5) with a typical duration of 4 h and investigate the evidence for quasi-periodic photometric variability on intra-night time-scales. Our photometry reaches precisions in the range 7–20 mmag, after removing instrumental systematics that correlate with sky background, seeing and airmass. Based upon a Lomb–Scargle periodogram analysis, the latest object in the sample – ULAS J2321 (T7.5) – appears to show quasi-periodic variability with a period of 1.64 h and an amplitude of 3 mmag. Given the low amplitude of variability and presence of systematics in our light curves, we discuss a Bayesian approach to robustly determine if quasi-periodic variability is present in a light curve affected by red noise. Using this approach, we conclude that the evidence for quasi-periodic variability in ULAS J2321 is not significant. As a result, we suggest that studies which identify quasi-periodic variables using the false alarm probability from a Lomb–Scargle periodogram are likely to overestimate the number of variable objects, even if field stars are used to set a higher false alarm probability threshold. Instead we argue that a hybrid approach combining a false alarm probability cut, followed by Bayesian model selection, is necessary for robust identification of quasi-periodic variability in light curves with red noise.