# # Program information file # PROGRAM_ID 2022A056 PROGRAM_TITLE Characterisation of brown dwarfs in the feedback driven star-forming region IC1396 using SpeX PROGRAM_INV1 Belinda Damian PROGRAM_INV2 Jessy Jose PROGRAM_INV3 Swagat Das PROGRAM_INV4 Mizna K A PROGRAM_INV5 PROGRAM_SCICAT stellar PROGRAM_ABSTRACT_BEG Brown dwarfs and sub-stellar objects are vital tracers of the low-mass end of star formation. Understanding the formation mechanism of these brown dwarfs helps in studying the evolution of both low-mass stars and planets. Although there have been several studies to detect and characterize these sub-stellar objects in nearby star forming regions, the census of the brown-dwarfs in the extreme feedback-dominated environments is minimal. Massive stars can alter their surroundings by their feedback activities, eventually affecting the ecosystem of the very low-massive objects. Hence it is vital to explore the feedback dominated SFRs to study the properties of brown dwarfs and to understand the dependence of the star to brown dwarf ratio on such extreme environments. IC1396 is one such feedback dominated SFR at a distance of 900pc, with a negligible extinction due to the activity of massive stars present in its central cluster, making it an ideal location for studying the role of external environmental factors on the formation and evolution of young sub-stellar objects. Using deep multi-wavelength data from Subaru-HSC, UKIDSS-WFCAM, and through broad-band SED analysis, 50 candidate brown dwarfs in the mass range of 0.02- 0.08 Msun have been identified. Since spectroscopic observations are required to confirm the membership and nature of these candidate brown dwarfs, we propose for a pilot survey of the brightest 28 candidate brown dwarfs in this region. The prism mode of Spex with wide spectral coverage is ideal for identifying the broad spectral features of the targets, such as the strong water-band absorption and the various spectral type sensitive and gravity insensitive indices that will be used for their spectral classification. If proven, the targets in this study will be the first-ever brown dwarf detection in one of the youngest, feedback dominated regions beyond the solar neighbourhood. PROGRAM_ABSTRACT_END