X-ray binary Populations in young stellar regions

Recent Chandra X-ray observations of nearby starburst galaxies have shown that point X-ray sources are associated with massive, young stellar clusters, but do not tend to coincide with them. We use a sophisticated binary evolution synthesis code (StarTrack) in combination with a simplified cluster model to track both the evolutionary state and the position of X-ray binaries as a function of time. Since these binaries are born within the cluster potential with self-consistent positions and velocities, we can show that a large fraction can be ejected from the parent due to supernova explosions and associated systemic velocities. For brighter sources and cluster masses below similar to 10(6)M(circle dot), we find that the average number of bright XRBs per cluster remains below unity, consistent with current observations.