TY - GEN A1 - Ernst, Andreas UR - https://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/9375/ N2 - This thesis is concerned with investigations on the dissolution of star clusters in the tidal field of the Galaxy and in particular its center. At first the escape process of stars from star clusters is studied in the framework of chaos-theoretical considerations. Already in the linear tidal approximation it is possible to compute the basins of escape and the chaotic saddle for the system. After the stars have left the star cluster they form tidal arms (or tails) due to the differential rotation of the Galaxy. For star clusters on circular orbits the theoretical framework for the investigation of the properties of tidal arms is discussed. The theory is applied for a star cluster model in the Galactic center. For this purpose a new N-body program called "nbody6gc" has been developed. The algorithm is described in detail and the results of N-body simulations are discussed. At certain positions, well-defined clumps develop in the tidal arms due to the epicyclic motion of the stars. The positions of the clumps are calculated with the analytical theory. Furthermore, a classification of the cluster stars according to radius and specific Jacobi energy is introduced in order to explain the dissolution times and a few results on the "paradox of youth" are formulated. TI - Dissolution of Star Clusters in the Galaxy and its Center KW - star clusters KW - stellar dynamics KW - chaos theory Y1 - 2009/// ID - heidok9375 AV - public ER -