Formation of Galaxy Clusters

Formation of galaxy clusters corresponds to the collapse of the largest gravitationally bound overdensities in the initial density field and is accompanied by the most energetic phenomena since the Big Bang and by the complex interplay between gravity-induced dynamics of collapse and baryonic processes associated with galaxy formation. Galaxy clusters are, thus, at the cross-roads of cosmology and astrophysics and are unique laboratories for testing models of gravitational structure formation, galaxy evolution, thermodynamics of the intergalactic medium, and plasma physics. At the same time, their large masses make them a useful probe of growth of structure over cosmological time, thus providing cosmological…