Stars, planets, and discs in multiple systems
Protoplanetary discs behave as astronomical wizards that turn small sand into planets. Although no magic is involved, the process of planet formation remains utterly mysterious. On the one hand, it is known that the process of star formation leads to a very high fraction of binarity. On the other hand, thousands of exoplanets have been detected around single, binary and even multiple stellar systems. Therefore, we have to face it: the process of planet formation is very resilient! Understanding how planets form in multiple systems largely relies in our capacity to comprehend gas and dust dynamics in circumstellar, circumbinary, or even more exotic protoplanetary discs. This is the scientific goal of SANDS. During this fellowship, I plan to study disc dynamics using the state-of-the-art hydrodynamical code PHANTOM coupled to the highly optimised radiative transfer code MCFOST. This combination constitutes the most powerful numerical tool available to model disc dynamics in multiple systems. The work will be done within a large collaborative network of leading experts in both disc observations and theory. This will guarantee the high impact of the deliverables and the worldwide dissemination of the results obtained. The main scope of the SANDS project is to answer the following question: how are the initial conditions for planet formation affected by stellar multiplicity? By doing so, I expect to provide a comprehensive picture of disc dynamics in multiple systems. This will shed light on the fundamental process of planet formation around young stars and inform about the resulting planetary architectures.