Cluster Core Dynamics at the Galactic Center

Abstract

We present results of N-body simulations aimed at understanding the dynamics of young stars near the Galactic center. Specifically, we model the inspiral of a cluster core containing an intermediate mass black hole and $N\sim 50$ cluster stars in the gravitational potential of a supermassive black hole. We first study the elliptic three-body problem to isolate issues of tidal stripping and subsequent scattering, followed by full N-body simulations to treat the internal dynamics consistently. We find that our simulations reproduce several dynamical features of the observed population. These include the observed inner edge of the claimed clockwise disk, as well as the thickness of said disk. We find that high density clumps, such as that claimed for IRS13E, also result generically from our simulations. However, not all features of the observations are reproduced. In particular, the surface density profile of the simulated disk scales as $\Sigma \propto r^{-0.75}$, which is considerably shallower than that observed. Further, at no point is any significant counter-rotating population formed.

ApJ accepted

References in corpus (27)

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Cited by in corpus (32)

• The Galactic Center Massive Black Hole and Nuclear Star Cluster
• An Extremely Top-Heavy IMF in the Galactic Center Stellar Disks
• A Disk of Young Stars at the Galactic Center as Determined by Individual Stellar Orbits
• Evidence for Warped Disks of Young Stars in the Galactic Center
• Properties of the Remnant Clockwise Disk of Young Stars in the Galactic Center
• The Distribution of Stars and Stellar Remnants at the Galactic Center
• The nuclear cluster of the Milky Way: Our primary testbed for the interaction of a dense star cluster with a massive black hole
• Near-infrared proper motions and spectroscopy of infrared excess sources at the Galactic Center
• Tidal effects on small bodies by massive black holes
• Explaining the Orbits of the Galactic Center S-Stars
• Dynamical and evolutionary constraints on the nature and origin of hypervelocity stars
• Constraints on the Stellar Mass Function from Stellar Dynamics at the Galactic Center
• Stellar dynamical evidence against a cold disc origin for stars in the Galactic Centre
• Dynamical constraints on the origin of the young B-stars in the Galactic center
• Mapping the Outer Edge of the Young Stellar Cluster in the Galactic Center
• IRS 13N: a new comoving group of sources at the Galactic Center
• Isolated massive stars in the Galactic center: The dynamic contribution from the Arches and Quintuplet star clusters
• Relativistic dynamics of stars near a supermassive black hole
• Confusing binaries: the role of stellar binaries in biasing disk properties in the Galactic Center
• Young, Massive Star Candidates Detected throughout the Nuclear Star Cluster of the Milky Way
• The Galactic Center as a laboratory for theories of gravity and dark matter
• The Effectiveness of the Kozai Mechanism in the Galactic Centre
• The origin of S-stars and a young stellar disk: distribution of debris stars of a sinking star cluster
• On the origin of kinematic distribution of the sub-parsec young stars in the Galactic center
• Eccentric disc instability in stellar discs formed from inspiraling gas clouds in the Galactic Centre
• A Measurement of Proper Motions of SiO Maser Sources in the Galactic Center with the VLBA
• Evolution of eccentric stellar disks around supermassive black holes: the complex disk disruption dynamics and the milliparsec stars
• Extreme Gravitational Interactions in the Problem of Three Black Holes in General Relativity
• Observational constraints on the formation and evolution of the Milky Way nuclear star cluster with Keck and Gemini
• Discovery of a Dense Association of Stars in the Vicinity of the Supermassive Black Hole Sgr A*
• Merger of Black Holes in the Galactic Center
• Resonant Dynamical Friction in Nuclear Star Clusters: Rapid Alignment of an Intermediate-mass Black Hole with a Stellar Disk