Properties of Brightest Cluster Members

Are the brightest cluster members (BCMs) somehow different from the "normal" ellipticals, or are their properties in accord with the high luminosity extension of the global properties and scaling laws of the family of ellipticals? We examined the behavior of BCMs in the parameter space defined by the luminosity (L), radius (R), surface brightness (μ), and velocity dispersion (σ), i.e., the so-called Fundamental Plane (FP) variables. We used the data from Malumuth and Kirshner, for both the core and the half-light parameters; the results on both radial scales were qualitatively the same.