Core radius evolution of star clusters

Abstract

We use N-body simulations of star clusters to investigate the possible dynamical origins of the observed spread in core radius among intermediate-age and old star clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Two effects are considered, a time-varying external tidal field and variations in primordial hard binary fraction. Simulations of clusters orbiting a point-mass galaxy show similar core radius evolution for clusters on both circular and elliptical orbits and we therefore conclude that the tidal field of the LMC has not yet significantly influenced the evolution of the intermediate-age clusters. The presence of large numbers of hard primordial binaries in a cluster leads to core radius expansion; however, the magnitude of the effect is insufficient to explain the observations. Further, the range of binary fractions required to produce significant core radius growth is inconsistent with the observational evidence that all the LMC clusters have similar stellar luminosity functions.

Accepted for publication in MNRAS

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