Related papers: The Heavy Element Composition of Disk Instability …
Giant planets are thought to have cores in their deep interiors, and the division into a heavy-element core and hydrogen-helium envelope is applied in both formation and structure models. We show that the primordial internal structure…
The observed wide eccentricity distribution of extrasolar giant planets is thought to be the result of dynamical instabilities and gravitational scattering among planets. Previously, it has been assumed that the orbits in giant planet…
In principle, the combined measurements of the mass and radius a giant exoplanet allow one to determine the relative fraction of hydrogen and helium and of heavy elements in the planet. However, uncertainties on the underlying physics imply…
Recent observations, including those by JWST, suggest that the atmospheres of many gas giant exoplanets have super-stellar metallicity that is anti-correlated with planetary mass. Several studies suggest that the super-stellar metallicity…
We run numerical simulations to study the accretion of gas and dust grains onto gas giant planets embedded into massive protoplanetary discs. The outcome is found to depend on the disc cooling rate, planet mass, grain size and irradiative…
I argue for two modes of gas giant planet formation and discuss the conditions under which each mode operates. Gas giant planets at disk radii $r>100$ AU are likely to form in situ by disk instability, while core accretion plus gas capture…
The disk instability (DI) model for giant planet formation remains an attractive alternative in explaining the formation of giant planets at early times, giant planets at large radial distances, and giant planets orbiting M-stars. In this…
We examine the uncertainties in current planetary models and we quantify their impact on the planet cooling histories and mass-radius relationships. These uncertainties include (i) the differences between the various equations of state used…
Atmospheric metal enrichment (i.e., elements heavier than helium, also called "metallicity") is a key diagnostic of the formation of giant planets. The giant planets of the solar system exhibit an inverse relationship between mass and both…
Recent observations of protoplanetary disks have revealed ring-like structures that can be associated to pressure maxima. Pressure maxima are known to be dust collectors and planet migration traps. Most of planet formation works are based…
We explore the origin of the trend of heavy elements in observed massive exoplanets. Coupling of better measurements of mass ($M_p$) and radius of exoplanets with planet structure models enables estimating the total heavy element mass…
For a long time, gravitational instability in the disk of planetesimals has been suspected to be the main engine responsible for the beginning of dust growth, its advantage being that it provides for rapid growth. Its real importance in…
Upcoming studies of extrasolar gas giants will give precise insights into the composition of planetary atmospheres with the ultimate goal to link it to the formation history of the planet. Here, we investigate how drifting and evaporating…
Observations and models of giant planets indicate that such objects are enriched in heavy elements compared to solar abundances. The prevailing view is that giant planets accreted multiple Earth masses of heavy elements after the end of…
The rate at which giant planets accumulate solids and gas is a critical component of planet formation models, yet it is extremely challenging to predict from first principles. Characterizing the heavy element (everything other than hydrogen…
Forming giant planets by disk instability requires a gaseous disk that is massive enough to become gravitationally unstable and able to cool fast enough for self-gravitating clumps to form and survive. Models with simplified disk cooling…
Exoplanet discoveries of recent years have provided a great deal of new data for studying the bulk compositions of giant planets. Here we identify 47 transiting giant planets ($20 M_\oplus < M < 20 M_{\mathrm{J}}$) whose stellar insolation…
Studies of internal structure of gas giant planets suggest that their envelopes are enriched with heavier elements than hydrogen and helium relative to their central stars. Such enrichment likely occurred by solid accretion during late…
Transition disks have dust-depleted inner regions and may represent an intermediate step of an on-going disk dispersal process, where planet formation is probably in progress. Recent millimetre observations of transition disks reveal…
In the nucleated instability picture of gas giant formation, the final stage is the rapid accretion of a massive gas envelope by a solid core, bringing about a tenfold or more increase in mass. This tends to trigger the scattering of any…