Related papers: Binaries and the dynamical mass of star clusters
Binary stars are dynamical systems formed by two stars that are physically bound by the gravitational force. Binary stars are privileged laboratories, allowing one to measure the fundamental properties of stars but also potentially changing…
Dynamical evolution of stellar mass distribution in star clusters is analysed by considering simultaneously the effects of dynamical friction, stochastic heating and the gravitational potential due to mass distribution in the clusters. A…
We postulate that most stars are born in aggregates of binary systems which are dynamically equivalent to the `dominant mode cluster'. The initial binary orbits are consitent with pre-main sequence data. Stellar masses are paired at random…
High-resolution N-body simulations are used to investigate systematic trends in the mass profiles and total masses of clusters as derived from 3 simple estimators: (1) the weak gravitational lensing shear field under the assumption of an…
On the basis of multislit spectroscopy of 180 stars in the ionising cluster of 30 Doradus we present reliable radial velocities for 55 stars. We calculate a radial velocity dispersion of ~35 km/s for the cluster and we analyse the possible…
The dynamical friction and diffusion coefficients are derived for a massive binary that moves against a uniform background of stars. The random impulses exerted on the binary's center of mass by the field stars are greater than those…
A novel way of looking at the evolution of star clusters is presented. With a dynamical temperature, given by the mean kinetic energy of the cluster stars, and a dynamical luminosity, which is defined as the kinetic energy of the stars…
Stars are mostly found in binary and multiple systems, as at least 50% of all solar-like stars have companions - a fraction that goes up to 100% for the most massive stars. Moreover, a large fraction of them will interact in some way or…
Binary fraction and orbital characteristics provide indications on the conditions of star formation, as they shed light on the environment they were born in. Multiple systems are more common in low density environments rather than in higher…
Massive stars can be found in wide (hundreds to thousands AU) binaries with other massive stars. We use $N$-body simulations to show that any bound cluster should always have approximately one massive wide binary: one will probably form if…
Using our recently improved Monte Carlo evolution code, we study the evolution of the binary fraction in globular clusters. In agreement with previous N-body simulations, we find generally that the hard binary fraction in the core tends to…
We apply probabilistic generative modelling of colour-magnitude diagrams to six young Galactic open star clusters and determine their mass functions, binary mass-ratio distributions, and the frequencies of binary stars. We find that younger…
Nearby companions alter the evolution of massive stars in binary systems. Using a sample of Galactic massive stars in nearby young clusters, we simultaneously measure all intrinsic binary characteristics relevant to quantify the frequency…
The galactic population of globular clusters are old, dense star systems, with a typical cluster containing $10^4 - 10^6$ stars. As an old population of stars, globular clusters contain many collapsed and degenerate objects. As a dense…
Very low-mass binaries (VLMBs), with system masses <0.2 Msun appear to have very different properties to stellar binaries. This has led to the suggestion that VLMBs form a distinct and different population. As most stars are born in…
Massive stars are among the most important objects in the Universe and many (most?) of them are formed in binaries. A selection of observational and theoretical facts that illustrate the importance of binaries and the evolution of massive…
Ultrafaint dwarf (UFD) galaxies are dominated by dark matter, the distribution of which may be inferred from the kinematics of that galaxy's stellar population. Star-by-star observations are available for the satellite UFD galaxies of the…
Unresolved binaries have a strong influence on the observed parameters of stellar clusters (SCs). We quantify this influence and compute the resulting mass underestimates and stellar mass function (MF). N-body simulations of realistic SCs…
Over the last decades, numerous wide (>1000 AU) binaries have been discovered in the Galactic field and halo. The origin of these wide binaries cannot be explained by star formation or by dynamical interactions in the Galactic field. We…
Many young and intermediate age massive stellar clusters host bimodal distributions in the rotation rates of their stellar populations, with a dominant peak of rapidly rotating stars and a secondary peak of slow rotators. The origin of this…