The faint light in groups and clusters of galaxies

Abstract

The diffuse light that spreads through groups and clusters of galaxies is made of free-floating stars not bound to any galaxy. This is known as the intracluster light (ICL) and holds important clues for understanding the evolution of these large structures. The study of this light has gained traction in the past 20 years thanks to technological and data processing advances that have permitted us to reach unprecedented observational depths. This progress has led to groundbreaking results in the field, such as pinpointing the origin of the ICL and its potential to map dark matter in clusters of galaxies. We now enter an era of deep and wide surveys that promise to uncover the faint Universe as never seen before, adding to our growing understanding of the properties of the ICL and, consequently, of the formation of the largest gravitationally-bound structures in the Universe. The goal of this review is to summarize the most recent results on ICL, synthesizing the current knowledge in the field and providing a global perspective that may benefit future ICL studies.