The phase curve of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-167b as seen by TESS

Context. Ultra-hot Jupiters (UHJs) orbiting pulsating A/F stars represent an important subset of the exoplanetary demographic. They are excellent candidates for the study of exoplanetary atmospheres, and are astrophysical laboratories for the investigation of planet-to-star interactions. Aims. We analysed the TESS light curve of the WASP-167 system, consisting of an F1V star and a substellar companion on a similar to 2.02 day orbit. Methods. We modelled the combination of the ellipsoidal variability and the Doppler beaming to measure the mass of WASP-167b, and the reflection effect to obtain constraints on the geometric albedo, while placing a special emphasis on noise separation. We implemented a basic model to determine the dayside (T-Day), nightside (T-Night), and intrinsic (T-Internal) temperatures of WASP-167b, and put a constraint on its Bond albedo. Results. We confirm the transit parameters of the planet seen in the literature. We find that a resonant similar to 2P(-1) stellar signal (which may originate from planet-to-star interactions) interferes with the phase curve analysis. After careful and thought-out treatment of this signal, we find M-p = 0.34 +/- 0.22 M-J. We measure a dayside temperature of 2790 +/- 100 K, classifying WASP-167b as an UHJ. We find a 2 sigma upper limit of 0.51 on its Bond albedo, and determine the geometric albedo at 0.34 +/- 0.11 (1 sigma uncertainty). Conclusions. With an occultation depth of 106.8 +/- 27.3 ppm in the TESS passband, the UHJ WASP-167b is an excellent target for atmospheric studies, especially those at thermal wavelength ranges, where the stellar pulsations are expected to be less influential.