Stellar Collisions in the Galactic Center

Like most galaxies, the Milky Way harbors a supermassive black hole (SMBH) at its center, surrounded by a dense nuclear star cluster. Most stars within 0.1 pc of the SMBH will experience one or more direct collisions with another star before evolving off the main-sequence. Using a statistical approach, we characterize the outcomes of these stellar collisions within the inner parsec of the Galactic Center (GC). Close to the SMBH, where the velocity dispersion is larger than the escape speed from a Sun-like star, collisions lead to mass loss. We find that the stellar population within 0.01 pc is halved within about a Gyr because of destructive collisions. Additionally, we predict a diffuse population of peculiar low-mass stars in the GC. These stars have been divested of their outer layers in the inner 0.01 pc before migrating to larger distances from the SMBH. Between 0.01 and 0.1 pc from the SMBH, collisions can result in mergers. Our results suggest that repeated collisions between lower mass stars can produce massive (> 10 M⊙) stars. We comment on G objects, dust and gas enshrouded stellar objects, that may result from main-sequence stellar collisions. Lastly, I will discuss the role collisions play in shaping the stellar density profile in the vicinity of the SMBH using both an analytic framework and semianalytic models.