Search for cool giant companions of the Be stars zeta Tau and KX And.

The CFHT Fourier transform spectrometer was used to search for the presumed cool luminous giant companions of two well-known Be shell stars Zeta Tau and KX And during August 27-30, 1985 in the K-band. These stars are possibly prototypes of interacting Be stars with a cool companion. In the case of Zeta Tau, the observed IR flux is insufficient to indicate the presence of a cool luminous star which overflows its Roche lobe. However, in the case of KX And, the observed IR energy distribution is compatible with such a companion.