A Holistic Approach to Terrestrial Planet Formation

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Exo-planets form in gas-rich protoplanetary discs around young stars. The modern version of the core accretion paradigm provides a roadmap for how to transform initially microscopic dust grains into pebbles, planetesimals, and finally planets. The properties of the forming planets (e.g., their masses, orbits, and composition) are then shaped by the physical and chemical processes associated with the various stages of planet formation. The interplay between these processes however is highly complex, and the nature of the link between the chemical make-up of the primordial disc, on one hand, and the composition of the emerging planets, on the other, is not well understood. This project involves developing and using state-of-the-art numerical models of the dynamic early stages of terrestrial planet formation, combining the latest ideas and insights from the theoretical planet formation, observational astronomy, and astrochemistry communities. The goal will be to simulate how the elemental and molecular composition of disc materials (e.g., amounts of water, organics, iron, etc.) is imprinted on growing and moving pebbles, planetesimals, and ultimately small, rocky worlds. Your work will provide an important link between protoplanetary discs (as observed with facilities such as ALMA or JWST) and mature exoplanets, shedding light on how planets resembling our own may be formed elsewhere in the universe.