Reconstructing the initial mass function of disc-bulge Galactic globular
  clusters from N-body simulations
  We propose an evolutionary model to describe the dynamical evolution of star
cluster systems in tidal fields, in which we calibrated the parametric
equations defining the model by running direct N-body simulations of star
clusters with a wide range of initial masses and set of orbital parameters,
living within the external tidal field generated by a disc-like galaxy. We
derived a new method to solve numerically the evolutionary equations, allowing
us to infer constraints on the mass of a star cluster from its age, present-day
mass, orbital parameters and external gravitational potential. The result has
been applied to the metal-rich subsample of Galactic globular clusters, being a
good representation of a disc-bulge population. We reconstructed the initial
mass function of these objects from the present-day mass function, finding that
a lognormal distribution is well preserved during the evolution of the globular
cluster system. The evolution of a power-law initial mass function has been
evaluated, confirming that it transforms into a lognormal distribution of the
cluster masses within an Hubble time. Our results are consistent with a
formation scenario in which metal-rich Galactic globular clusters formed from
giant molecular clouds in high-pressure regions during the early phases of the
evolution of the Galactic disc and bulge.
