Related papers: A close-encounter method for simulating the dynami…
We study the interaction between massive planets and a gas disc with a mass in the range expected for protoplanetary discs. We use SPH simulations to study the orbital evolution of a massive planet as well as the dynamical response of the…
Over the course of last decade, the Nice model has dramatically changed our view of the solar system's formation and early evolution. Within the context of this model, a transient period of planet-planet scattering is triggered by…
We study the dynamics of a vertically thin, dispersion-dominated disk of planetesimals with eccentricities $e$ and inclinations $i$ (normalized in Hill units) satisfying $e >> 1$, $i << e^{-2} << 1$. This situation may be typical for e.g. a…
Sufficiently massive growing giant planets have circumplanetary disks, and the capture of solid bodies by the disks would likely influence the growth of the planets and formation of satellite systems around them. In addition to dust…
(Abridged).We present the results of MHD simulations of low mass protoplanets interacting with turbulent disks. We calculate the orbital evolution of `planetesimals' and protoplanets with masses in the range 0 < m_p < 30 M_Earth.…
We study the evolution of disc galaxies in group environments under the effect of both the global tidal field and close-encounters between galaxies, using controlled N-body simulations of isolated mergers. We find that close-range…
The existence of planets born in environments highly perturbed by a stellar companion represents a major challenge to the paradigm of planet formation. In numerical simulations, the presence of a close binary companion stirs up the relative…
It appears that most stars are born in clusters, and that at birth most stars have circumstellar discs which are comparable in size to the separations between the stars. Interactions between neighbouring stars and discs are therefore likely…
Recent years have seen growing interest in the streaming instability as a candidate mechanism to produce planetesimals. However, these investigations have been limited to small-scale simulations. We now present the results of a global…
We present three-dimensional self-gravitating smoothed-particle hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations of an isothermal gaseous disc interacting with an embedded planet. Discs of varying stability are simulated with planets ranging from 10…
The similar orbital distances and detection rates of debris disks and the prominent rings observed in protoplanetary disks suggest a potential connection between these structures. We explore this connection with new calculations that follow…
The formation of planets depends on the underlying protoplanetary disc structure, which influences both the accretion and migration rates of embedded planets. The disc itself evolves on time-scales of several Myr during which both…
More than a decade of dedicated experimental work on the collisional physics of protoplanetary dust has brought us to a point at which the growth of dust aggregates can - for the first time - be self-consistently and reliably modelled. In…
A planetary system can undergo multiple episodes of intense dynamical activities throughout its life, resulting in the production of star-grazing planetesimals (or exocomets) and pollution of the host star. Such activity is especially…
Theory and simulations suggest that it is possible to form low-mass hydrogen-burning stars, brown dwarfs and planetary-mass objects via disc fragmentation. As disc fragmentation results in the formation of several bodies at comparable…
Numerical simulations of the stochastic end stage of planet formation typically begin with a population of embryos and planetesimals that grow into planets by merging. We analyzed the impact parameters of collisions leading to the growth of…
We present the Superparticle Model/Algorithm for Collisions in Kuiper belts and debris disks (SMACK), a new method for simultaneously modeling, in 3-D, the collisional and dynamical evolution of planetesimals in a debris disk with planets.…
Our recent N-body simulations of planetary system formation, incorporating models for the main physical processes thought to be important during the building of planets (i.e. gas disc evolution, migration, planetesimal/boulder accretion,…
During close approaches to planets or stars, the morphological and dynamical properties of rubble-pile small bodies can be modified, and some may catastrophically break up. This phenomenon is of particular interest for understanding the…
Planet formation occurs over a few Myr within protoplanetary discs of dust and gas, which are often assumed to evolve in isolation. However, extended gaseous structures have been uncovered around many protoplanetary discs, suggestive of…