Related papers: The dynamical evolution of Taurus--Auriga-type agg…
We report on a high-spatial-resolution survey for binary stars in the periphery of the Orion Nebula Cluster, at 5 - 15 arcmin (0.65 - 2 pc) from the cluster center. We observed 228 stars with adaptive optics systems, in order to find…
Multiple systems play an important role in the evolution of star clusters. First we discuss several formation mechanisms which depend on the presence of binaries, either primordial or of dynamical origin. Hierarchical configurations are…
Stars in globular clusters formed and evolved in the most extreme environment: high density and low metallicity. If the formation of stars and planets are at all sensitive to environmental conditions, this should therefore be evident in…
The Taurus-Auriga association and its associated molecular cloud are a benchmark population for studies of star and planet formation. The census of Taurus-Auriga has been assembled over seven decades and has inherited the biases,…
Dusty primordial disks surrounding young low-mass stars are revealing tracers of stellar and planetary formation. The evolution and lifetime of these disks define the boundary conditions of the mechanisms of planet formation. Stellar…
The presence of multiple stellar populations in globular clusters leads to a complex dynamical environment that significantly influences the evolution of binary stars, which in turn impacts the evolution of the cluster itself. For this…
We postulate that most stars are born in aggregates of binary systems which are dynamically equivalent to the `dominant mode cluster'. The initial binary orbits are consitent with pre-main sequence data. Stellar masses are paired at random…
In dense stellar systems the frequent dynamical interactions between stars play a crucial role in the formation and evolution of compact binaries. We study these processes using a novel approach combining a state-of-the-art binary…
We present a high spatial resolution UV to NIR survey of 44 young binary stars in Taurus with separations of 10-1000 AU. The primary results include: (1) The relative ages of binary star components are more similar than the relative ages of…
We present results from a large, high-spatial-resolution near-infrared imaging search for stellar and sub-stellar companions in the Taurus-Auriga star-forming region. The sample covers 64 stars with masses between those of the most massive…
We have carried out a major survey for visual binaries towards the Orion Nebula Cluster using HST images obtained with an H-alpha filter. Among 781 likely ONC members more than 60" from theta-1 Ori C, we find 78 multiple systems (75…
We have collated multiplicity data for five clusters (Taurus, Chamaeleon I, Ophiuchus, IC348, and the Orion Nebula Cluster). We have applied the same mass ratio (flux ratios of delta K <= 2.5) and primary mass cuts (~0.1-3.0 Msun) to each…
General properties of the Orion star-forming region are discussed, with a focus on the dense Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC). This cluster contains between 2500 and 4500 objects located within a few parsecs of the eponymous Trapezium stars. Its…
Observations and theory suggest that star clusters can form in a subvirial (cool) state and are highly substructured. Such initial conditions have been proposed to explain the level of mass segregation in clusters through dynamics, and have…
Aims. The brown dwarf (BD) formation process has not yet been completely understood. To shed more light on the differences and similarities between star and BD formation processes, we study and compare the disk fraction among both kinds of…
[abridged] We present high resolution optical spectra of stars in Taurus-Auriga whose circumstellar environment suggests that they are less evolved than optically revealed T Tauri stars. Many of the stars are seen only via scattered light.…
We carry out three-dimensional MHD simulations of star formation in turbulent, magnetized clouds, including ambipolar diffusion and feedback from protostellar outflows. The calculations focus on relatively diffuse clouds threaded by a…
We present a survey for the tightest visual binaries among 0.3-2 Msun members the Orion Nebula Cluster (ONC). Among 42 targets, we discovered 13 new 0.025-0.15" companions. Accounting for the Branch bias, we find a companion star fraction…
The formation of brown dwarfs (BDs) poses a key challenge to star formation theory. The observed dearth of nearby ($\leq 5$ AU) brown dwarf companions to solar-mass stars, known as the brown dwarf desert, as well as the tendency for…
This review concentrates almost entirely on globular star clusters. It emphasises the increasing realisation that few of the traditional problems of star cluster astronomy can be studied in isolation: the influence of the Galaxy affects…