Star Clusters and Super Massive Black Holes: High Velocity Stars Production

TL;DR

This paper explores a novel mechanism where interactions between star clusters and supermassive black holes in galactic centers produce high velocity stars, some of which can escape the galaxy.

Contribution

It introduces a new channel for high velocity star production through star cluster and black hole interactions, expanding understanding of stellar dynamics in galactic centers.

Findings

Stars can reach velocities sufficient to escape the galaxy.

Interaction mechanisms include gravitational energy extraction and slingshot effects.

Some stars are stripped from clusters and orbit the galactic center.

Abstract

One possible origin of high velocity stars in the Galaxy is that they are the product of the interaction of binary systems and supermassive black holes. We investigate a new production channel of high velocity stars as due to the close interaction between a star cluster and supermassive black holes in galactic centres. The high velocity acquired by some stars of the cluster comes from combined effect of extraction of their gravitational binding energy and from the slingshot due to the interaction with the black holes. Stars could reach a velocity sufficient to travel in the halo and even overcome the galactic potential well, while some of them are just stripped from the cluster and start orbiting around the galactic centre.