# Quantifying the Origin and Distribution of Intracluster Light in a Fornax-like Cluster

## TL;DR

This study uses cosmological simulations to analyze the origin, distribution, and characteristics of intracluster light in a Fornax-like galaxy cluster, revealing the different sources and spatial concentrations of stars contributing to the ICL.

## Contribution

It introduces a detailed simulation-based analysis of ICL origins, distinguishing between stars from galaxy discs and haloes, and their spatial distributions within a cluster.

## Key findings

- Disc ICL stars are more centrally concentrated than halo ICL stars.
- A heavily disrupted disc-dominated galaxy contributes significantly to the ICL.
- At large radii, ICL is dominated by older stars from galaxy haloes.

## Abstract

Using a cosmological $N$-body simulation, we investigate the origin and distribution of stars in the intracluster light (ICL) of a Fornax-like cluster. In a dark matter only simulation we identify a halo which, at $z=0$, has $M_200 \simeq 4.1 \times 10^{13}M_{sun}$ and $r_{200} = 700kpc$, and replace infalling subhalos with models that include spheroid and disc components. As they fall into the cluster, the stars in some of these galaxies are stripped from their hosts, and form the ICL. We consider the separate contributions to the ICL from stars which originate in the haloes and the discs of the galaxies. We find that disc ICL stars are more centrally concentrated than halo ICL stars. The majority of the disc ICL stars are associated with one initially disc-dominated galaxy that falls to the centre of the cluster and is heavily disrupted, producing part of the cD galaxy. At radial distances greater than 200kpc, well beyond the stellar envelope of the cD galaxy, stars formerly from the stellar haloes of galaxies dominate the ICL. Therefore at large distances, the ICL population is dominated by older stars.