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Mean field fluctuations and the evolution of self-gravitating systems

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Abstract

This paper considers the nonlinear effects of collective fluctuations about a slowly-varying solution of the ‘collisionless Boltzmann’ equation appropriate for a system of stars with a distribution of masses. It is argued that these effects should be manifest on a time-scalet M intermediate between the violent and collisional relaxation times, inhibiting the natural progression towards equipartition induced by collisions, and favouring instead a ‘well-mixed’ state, realized in numerical simulations, in which the mean square velocity is independent of the mass.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, France

    Henry E. Kandrup

  2. University of Maryland, College Park, Md., USA

    Henry E. Kandrup

  3. Faculteit van de Wetenschappen, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium

    George Severne

Authors
  1. Henry E. Kandrup
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  2. George Severne
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Kandrup, H.E., Severne, G. Mean field fluctuations and the evolution of self-gravitating systems. Astrophys Space Sci 126, 177–184 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00644185

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00644185

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