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The shape of the radial distribution of blue straggler stars (BSS), when normalized to a reference population of horizontal branch (HB) stars, has been found to be a powerful indicator of the dynamical evolution reached by a globular cluster (GC). In particular, observations suggest that the BSS distribution bimodality is modulated by the dynamical age of the host GC; dynamically unrelaxed GCs show a flat BSS distribution, and more relaxed GCs show a minimum at a radius that increases for increasing dynamical age, resulting in a natural “dynamical clock.” While direct N-body simulations are able to reproduce the general trend, thus supporting its dynamical origin, the migration of the minimum of the distribution appears to be noisy and not well defined. Here we show that a simple unidimensional model based on dynamical friction (drift) and Brownian motion (diffusion) correctly reproduces the qualitative motion of the minimum, without adjustable parameters except for the BSS to HB stars mass ratio. Differential dynamical friction effects combine with diffusion to create a bimodality in the BSS distribution and to determine its evolution, driving the migration of the minimum to larger radii over time. The diffusion coefficient is strongly constrained by the need to reproduce the migratory behavior of the minimum, and the radial dependence of diffusion set by fundamental physical arguments automatically satisfies this constraint. Therefore, our model appears to capture the fluctuation–dissipation dynamics that underpins the dynamical clock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the results of a set of N-body simulations aimed at exploring how the process of mass segregation (as traced by the spatial distribution of blue straggler stars, BSSs) is affected by the presence of a population of heavy dark remnants (as neutron stars and black holes (BHs)). To this end, clusters characterized by different initial concentrations and different fractions of dark remnants have been modeled. We find that an increasing fraction of stellar-mass BHs significantly delay the mass segregation of BSSs and the visible stellar component. In order to trace the evolution of BSS segregation, we introduce a new parameter (A+), which can be easily measured when the cumulative radial distribution of these stars and a reference population are available. Our simulations show that A+ might also be used as an approximate indicator of the time remaining to the core collapse of the visible component. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, both stellar mass segregation and binary fractions were uniformly measured on relatively large samples of Galactic globular clusters (GCs). Simulations show that both sizable binary-star populations and intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) quench mass segregation in relaxed GCs. Thus mass segregation in GCs with a reliable binary-fraction measurement is a valuable probe to constrain IMBHs. In this paper we combine mass-segregation and binary-fraction measurements from the literature to build a sample of 33 GCs (with measured core binary fractions), and a sample of 43 GCs (with binary-fraction measurements in the area between the core radius and the half-mass radius). Within both samples we try to identify IMBH-host candidates. These should have relatively low mass segregation, a low binary fraction (<5%), and a short (<1 Gyr) relaxation time. Considering the core-binary-fraction sample, no suitable candidates emerge. If the binary fraction between the core and the half-mass radius is considered, two candidates are found, but this is likely due to statistical fluctuations. We also consider a larger sample of 54 GCs where we obtained an estimate of the core binary fraction using a predictive relation based on metallicity and integrated absolute magnitude. Also in this case no suitable candidates are found. Finally, we consider the GC core- to half-mass radius ratio, which is expected to be larger for GCs containing either an IMBH or binaries. We find that GCs with large core- to half-mass radius ratios are less mass-segregated (and show a larger binary fraction), confirming the theoretical expectation that the energy sources responsible for the large core are also quenching mass segregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The simulation of large biomolecules and biological assemblies requires to achieve an optimal balance between physical realism and computational efficiency. We describe how an effective strategy is based on a dual representation, whereby macromolecules are described by means of a coarse grained, particle-based representation, while aqueous solvent and electrolytes are represented by a mesoscopic, kinetic treatment. The joint usage of the Molecular Dynamics and Lattice Boltzmann techniques provides an optimal combination for these representations and allows simulating from proteins to polynucleotides under a wide range of equilibrium and off-equilibrium conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I present an overview of the main observational properties of a special class of exotic objects (the so-called Blue Straggler Stars, BSSs) in Galactic Globular Clusters (GCs). The BSS specific frequency and their radial distribution are discussed in the framework of using this stellar population as probe of GC internal dynamics. In particular, the shape of the BSS radial distribution has been found to be a powerful tracer of the dynamical evolution of stellar systems, thus allowing the definition of an empirical “clock”able to measure the dynamical age of stellar aggregates from pure observational properties. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

I present an overview of our ongoing project aimed at building a new generation of velocity dispersion profiles ad rotation curves for a representative sample of Galactic globular clusters, from the the radial velocity of hundreds of individual stars distributed at different distances from the cluster center. The innermost portion of the profiles will be used to constrain the possible presence of intermediate-mass black holes. The adopted methodology consists of combining spectroscopic observations acquired with three different instruments at the ESO-VLT: the adaptive-optics assisted, integral field unit (IFU) spectrograph SINFONI for the innermost and highly crowded cluster cores, the multi-IFU spectrograph KMOS for the intermediate regions, and the multi-fiber instrument FLAMES/GIRAFFE-MEDUSA for the outskirts. The case of NGC 6388, representing the pilot project that motivated the entire program, is described in some details. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We used an appropriate combination of high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope observations and wide-field, ground-based data to derive the radial stellar density profiles of 26 Galactic globular clusters from resolved star counts (which can be all freely downloaded on-line). With respect to surface brightness (SB) profiles (which can be biased by the presence of sparse, bright stars), star counts are considered to be the most robust and reliable tool to derive cluster structural parameters. For each system, a detailed comparison with both King and Wilson models has been performed and the most relevant best-fit parameters have been obtained. This collection of data represents the largest homogeneous catalog collected so far of star count profiles and structural parameters derived therefrom. The analysis of the data of our catalog has shown that (1) the presence of the central cusps previously detected in the SB profiles of NGC 1851, M13, and M62 is not confirmed; (2) the majority of clusters in our sample are fit equally well by the King and the Wilson models; (3) we confirm the known relationship between cluster size (as measured by the effective radius) and galactocentric distance; (4) the ratio between the core and the effective radii shows a bimodal distribution, with a peak at ~0.3 for about 80% of the clusters and a secondary peak at ~0.6 for the remaining 20%. Interestingly, the main peak turns out to be in agreement with that expected from simulations of cluster dynamical evolution and the ratio between these two radii correlates well with an empirical dynamical-age indicator recently defined from the observed shape of blue straggler star radial distribution, thus suggesting that no exotic mechanisms of energy generation are needed in the cores of the analyzed clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a simple result in which the distance gradient along a stream can be used to derive the transverse velocity (i.e. proper motion) along it, if the line-of-sight velocity is also known. We show its application to a mock orbit to illustrate its validity and usage. For less extended objects, such as globular clusters and satellite galaxies being tidally disrupted, the same result can be applied in its small-angle approximation. The procedure does not rely on energy or angular momentum conservation and hence does not require a Galactic model in order to deduce the local velocity vector of the stream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use the Chandrasekhar formalism and direct N-body simulations to study the effect of dynamical friction on a test object only slightly more massive than the field stars, orbiting a spherically symmetric background of particles with a mass spectrum. The main goal is to verify whether the dynamical friction time (tDF) develops a non-monotonic radial dependence that could explain the bimodality of the blue straggler radial distributions observed in globular clusters. In these systems, in fact, relaxation effects lead to a mass and velocity radial segregation of the different mass components, so that mass-spectrum effects on tDF are expected to be dependent on radius. We find that in spite of the presence of different masses, tDF is always a monotonic function of radius, at all evolutionary times and independently of the initial concentration of the simulated cluster. This is because the radial dependence of tDF is largely dominated by the total mass density profile of the background stars (which is monotonically decreasing with radius). Hence, a progressive temporal erosion of the blue straggler star (BSS) population at larger and larger distances from the cluster center remains the simplest and the most likely explanation of the shape of the observed BSS radial distributions, as suggested in previous works. We also confirm the theoretical expectation that approximating a multi-mass globular cluster as made of (averaged) equal-mass stars can lead to significant overestimations of tDF within the half-mass radius. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]