Related papers: The Baltimore and Utrecht models for cluster disso…
Most stars form in star clusters and stellar associated. To understand the roles of star cluster environments in shaping the dynamical evolution of planetary systems, we carry out direct $N$-body simulations of four planetary systems models…
Traditional studies of stellar clusters in external galaxies use surface photometry and therefore focus on systems that are still bright and compact enough to be separated from the stellar background. Consequently, the latter stages of…
(Abridged) The formation and evolution of star cluster populations are related to the galactic environment. Cluster formation is governed by processes acting on galactic scales, and star cluster disruption is driven by the tidal field. In…
We study star clusters in two fields in the nearby spiral galaxy M83 using broad and narrow band optical imaging taken with the WFC3 on-board HST. We present results based on several different catalogs of star clusters in an inner and outer…
Massive star clusters are often used as tracers of galaxy formation and assembly. In order to do so, we must understand their properties at formation, and how those properties change with time, galactic environment, and galaxy assembly…
We investigate the dynamical effects of rapid gas expulsion from the core of a young stellar cluster. The aims of this study are to determine 1) whether a mass-segregated core survives the gas expulsion and 2) the probable location of any…
We calculated the broad-band photometric evolution of unresolved star clusters, including the preferential loss of low-mass stars due to mass segregation. The stellar mass function of a cluster evolves due to three effects: (a) the…
We report results of a large set of N-body calculations aimed to study the evolution of multi-mass star clusters in external tidal fields. Our clusters start with the same initial mass-functions, but varying particle numbers, orbital types…
Stars mostly form in groups consisting of a few dozen to several ten thousand members. For 30 years, theoretical models provide a basic concept of how such star clusters form and develop: they originate from the gas and dust of collapsing…
Mass segregation in a star cluster is studied in an analytical manner. We consider a two-component cluster, which consists of two types of stars with different masses. Plummer's model is used for the initial condition. We trace the overall…
In this thesis we study several aspects of dynamical evolution of stellar clusters. The results of more than 200 simulations of single-mass star clusters with different initial total mass, half-mass radius and galactocentric distance, are…
The mass of unresolved young star clusters derived from spectro-photometric data may well be off by a factor of 2 or more once the migration of massive stars driven by mass segregation is accounted for. We quantify this effect for a large…
Understanding the evolution of stellar clusters in an evolving tidal field is critical for studying the disruption of stellar clusters in a cosmological context. We systematically characterise the response of stellar clusters to tidal…
Most stars, perhaps even all stars, form in crowded stellar environments. Such star forming regions typically dissolve within ten million years, while others remain bound as stellar groupings for hundreds of millions to billions of years,…
We performed N-body simulations of both individual cluster evolution and subcluster coalescence, demonstrating that cluster evolution and its outcomes strongly depend on the cluster formation process through comparisons of different gas…
Globular clusters are among the oldest objects in galaxies, and understanding the details of their formation and evolution can bring valuable insight into the early history of galaxies. This review summarises the current knowledge about the…
Currently clusters/associations of stars are mainly detected as surface density enhancements relative to the background field. While clusters form, their surface density increases. It likely decreases again at the end of the star formation…
Observational results of young star-forming regions suggest that star clusters are completely mass segregated at birth. As a star cluster evolves dynamically, these initial conditions are gradually lost. For star clusters with single stars…
The appearance of nuclear clusters in stellar matter at densities below nuclear saturation is an important feature in the modeling of the equation of state for astrophysical applications. There are different theoretical concepts to describe…
We have derived masses and ages for 79 early-type galaxies (ETGs) in different environments at z~1.3 in the Lynx supercluster and in the GOODS/CDF-S field using multiwavelength (0.6-4.5 $\mu$m; KPNO, Palomar, Keck, HST, Spitzer) datasets.…