Title:

Stars between Galaxies: The Diffuse Stellar Population in Galaxy
Clusters



Ortwin Gerhard
Max-Planck-Institut fuer Ex. Physik, Garching



Abstract:

 Clusters of galaxies are now known to contain a diffuse stellar
 population comprising about 10% of the total stellar mass. In this
 talk I discuss the properties and origins of this population,
 comparing observations (integrated light photometry, individual stars
 in nearby clusters, radial velocities from planetary nebulae emission
 lines) with the predictions of hydrodynamic cosmological simulations
 of structure formation. Some emphasis will be given to recent work on
 the Coma cluster.