Modeling Dense Star Clusters in the Milky Way and Beyond with the CMC Cluster Catalog

Abstract

We present a set of 148 independent N -body simulations of globular clusters (GCs) computed using the code CMC ( Cluster Monte Carlo ). At an age of ∼10–13 Gyr, the resulting models cover nearly the full range of cluster properties exhibited by the Milky Way GCs, including total mass, core and half-light radii, metallicity, and galactocentric distance. We use our models to investigate the role that stellar-mass black holes play in the process of core collapse. Furthermore, we study how dynamical interactions affect the formation and evolution of several important types of sources in GCs, including low-mass X-ray binaries, millisecond pulsars, blue stragglers, cataclysmic variables, Type Ia supernovae, calcium-rich transients, and merging compact binaries. While our focus here is on old, low-metallicity GCs, our CMC simulations follow the evolution of clusters over a Hubble time, and they include a wide range of metallicities (up to solar), so that our results can also be used to study younger and higher-metallicity star clusters. Finally, the output from these simulations is available for download at https://cmc.ciera.northwestern.edu/home/.