2013AJ....145..158M

We present multi-epoch photometric and spectroscopic near-infrared observations of the Be star X Persei in the JHK bands covering the wavelength range 1.08-2.35 µm. Combining results from our earlier studies with the present observations, it is shown that the equivalent widths and line fluxes of the prominent H I and He I lines anti-correlate with the strength of the adjacent continuum. That is, during the span of the observations, the JHK broadband fluxes increase while the emission equivalent width values of the H I and He I lines decrease (the lines under consideration being the Paschen and Brackett lines of hydrogen and the 1.7002 µm and 2.058 µm lines of helium). Such an anti-correlation effect is not commonly observed in Be stars in the optical; in the infrared, this may possibly be the first reported case of such behavior. We examine different mechanisms that could possibly cause it and suggest that it could originate due to a radiatively warped, precessing circumstellar disk. It is also shown that during the course of our studies, X Per evolved to an unprecedented state of high near-IR brightness with J, H, K magnitudes of 5.20, 5.05, and 4.84, respectively.