A deep view on intracluster light and galaxy clusters with Wendelstein, Euclid, and eROSITA

The intracluster light (ICL) is an elusive stellar component of galaxy clusters. Despite being ultra-faint, it has been observed in many galaxy clusters because it extends over large physical scales. The ICL consists of unbound stars that are free-floating in the cluster gravitational potential. Its origin is still a puzzle. In this talk, I will explore proposed formation channels from various perspectives (surface brightness profiles, accretion signatures, kinematics, stellar populations). Current observations are often limited to a low redshift due to the rapidly increasing effect of cosmic surface brightness dimming. Simulations and semi-analytic ICL formation models predict the bulk of the ICL to form below z=1. This redshift range is accessible to EUCLID (optical+NIR) and eROSITA (X-ray) where first data are already available. In an outlook, I will present ongoing efforts of tracking ICL growth using these new data sets.