Understanding the central kinematics of massive star clusters: Evidence for massive black holes?

该项目的目的是研究球状星团的中心运动学，球状星团是在所有主要星系的引力势中运行的大质量星团。一系列奇异的物体，如恒星质量的黑洞、脉冲星或激变变星，已知存在于星系团中心周围。在这里，我们将研究在球状星团中是否还会发现更难以捉摸的物体，即中等质量的黑洞。重达数千个太阳质量的中等质量黑洞将是解释超大质量黑洞形成过程中缺失的一环，而超大质量黑洞通常位于星系中心。最广泛使用的定位和描述任何大质量黑洞的技术是通过恒星运动学，因为在它附近运行的恒星被黑洞的引力场加速。在这个项目中，我们将分析来自缪斯积分场光谱仪的现有数据。由于激光辅助的自适应光学系统，缪斯能够以前所未有的空间分辨率研究球状星团中心周围的恒星运动学。这些数据将与最先进的动力学模型相结合，这些模型将约束星系团中任何潜在中等质量黑洞的质量。虽然我们将使用牛仔裤模型开始我们的分析，但也计划在项目的后期阶段探索使用Schwarzschild模型来完成这项任务。

The aim of the project is the study of the central kinematics of globular clusters, massive star clusters orbiting in the gravitational potentials of all major galaxies. A range of exotic objects, such as stellar-mass black holes, pulsars, or cataclysmic variables, are already known to reside around the cluster centres. Here, we will investigate if even more elusive objects, namely intermediate-mass black holes, are also to be found in globular clusters. Weighing thousands of solar masses, intermediate-mass black holes would represent the missing link in explaining the formation of the supermassive black holes that are routinely found in the centres of galaxies. The most widely used technique to locate and characterize any massive black hole is via stellar kinematics, as the stars orbiting in its vicinity are accelerated by the gravitational field of the black hole. In this project, we will analyse existing data from the MUSE integral field spectrograph. Thanks to a laser-assisted adaptive optics system, MUSE is able to study the stellar kinematics around the centres of globular clusters at unprecedented spatial resolution. The data will be combined with state-of-the-art dynamical models, that will constrain the masses of any potential intermediate-mass black holes residing in the clusters. While we will begin our analyses using Jeans models, it is also planned to explore the use of Schwarzschild models for this task during the later stages of the project.