Mathematics – Probability
Scientific paper
Jan 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010aas...21560651j&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #606.51; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 36, p.1138
Mathematics
Probability
Scientific paper
Binaries are thought to be the primary energy source in globular clusters, since they can heat the environmental stars in globular clusters by converting their binding energy to kinetic energy of the encounter stars through dynamical interactions. Even a small primordial binary fraction is sufficient to prevent globular clusters from core collapse for many relaxation times. So binary fraction is an essential parameter which can dramatically affect the evolution of globular clusters. Here we present a detailed analyzing method on the binary fraction of globular cluster NGC 5053, with the HST archival ACS data in the F606W and F814W bands. The PSF-fitting photometry is used with the DOLPHOT ACS module to obtain a high quality color-magnitude diagram. An aperture photometry is also performed for comparison. We find that both the PSF-fitting and aperture photometry obtain similar quality CMDs, but PSF photometry tends to recover more stars towards the cluster core. We also formulate the blending effect (or star superposition) to be the Poisson probability distribution function, which is confirmed by our Monte-Carlo simulations for blending. A minimum binary fraction is obtained by counting stars that are beyond 3-sigma photometric errors on the blue side. A global binary fraction is also obtained by comparing the residual color distribution profile of the Main Sequence stars to the one that is constructed by artificial stars with a known binary fraction. Chi-square test is then used to search the best-fit binary fraction value. We obtain a minimum binary fraction of 6.6% for NGC 5053, which does not depend on any assumption of the binary mass ratio distribution, and a model-dependent binary fraction range of 7% to 12%. Finally, we select 242 binary candidates that are beyond 3-sigma photometric errors, which could be later confirmed by spectroscopic observations from the ground.
Bregman Joel N.
Ji Jun
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