Searching for intermediate mass black holes: understanding the data
  first
  The detection of intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs) in globular clusters
has been hotly debated, with different observational methods delivering
different outcomes for the same object. In order to understand these
discrepancies, we construct detailed mock integral field spectroscopy (IFU)
observations of globular clusters, starting from realistic Monte Carlo cluster
simulations. The output is a data cube of spectra in a given field-of-view that
can be analyzed in the same manner as real observations and compared to other
(resolved) kinematic measurement methods. We show that the main discrepancies
arise because the luminosity-weighted IFU observations can be strongly biased
by the presence of a few bright stars that introduce a scatter in velocity
dispersion measurements of several km/s. We show that this intrinsic scatter
can prevent a sound assessment of the central kinematics, and therefore should
be fully taken into account to correctly interpret the signature of an IMBH.
