Gravitational Scattering Experiments in Infinite Homogeneous N-Body Systems

Abstract

I performed a series of numerical experiments of the gravitational scattering in infinite homogeneous N-body systems. The infinite homogeneous system is expressed using periodic boundary condition. In the homogeneous systems we can obtain results more straightforword than in spherical systems. Firstly, I investigated upper cutoff of impact parameter in the Coulomb logarithm. There has been two arguments that the upper cutoff should be system size (R) and it should be mean particle distance (RN 1/3). I obtained the result that the upper cutoff is roughly equal to the system size R. Secondly, I investigated exponential divergence of initial small difference. I confirmed that this exponential divergence saturates at a scale of ~RN -1/2.