Nonadiabatic observables in main sequence delta Scuti stars

Using a theoretical nonadiabatic pulsation model, phase differences and amplitude ratios between the relative effective temperature variation and the relative radial displacement have been calculated. These quantities, when compared with photometric observations in different colors, provide an efficient instrument for mode identification, the first step to understand the internal structure of the stars. The theoretical results presented in this paper show a dependence for delta Scuti stars on the mixing length parameter alpha used to treat the convection using the standard Mixing Length Theory. The nonadiabatic pulsational code developed here includes the pulsation atmosphere interaction as described by Dupret et al. (2002). The equilibrium models are provided by the CESAM evolutionary code, where a complete reconstruction of non-grey atmospheres (Kurucz models) is included.