Abstract
Galaxy clusters, the largest gravitationally bound systems in the Universe, are home to the brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs), giant elliptical galaxies at their centers. While regular elliptical galaxies do not form stars, BCGs in clusters do, and the reasons for this, as well as their different thermodynamic profiles, remain unclear. Building on previous work by Arsen Levitskiy and Jeremy Lim, this talk sheds light on the role of dynamical perturbations and relaxation in determining whether or not the intracluster medium (ICM) cools catastrophically. The talk provides a brief background on BCGs and presents new results on: 1. why do different clusters have different thermodynamic profiles? 2. why do some clusters host sf BCGs and others do not?
Anyone interested is welcome to attend.