Senior Research Associate (Oberassistent)

(for CV click here)

	An image of the HD100546 protoplanetary disk	An image of the exoplanet beta Pictoris b	An image of the HD97048 protoplanetary disk
	Quanz et al. (2011) ApJ 738, Issue 1, 23 (click to enlarge)	Quanz et al. (2010) ApJL 722, pp. 49-53 (click to enlarge)	Quanz et al. (2011) A&A accepted (click to enlarge)

Research Interests

How many Solar Systems exist in our galaxy? How many planets orbit other stars and what are their properties? Are there planets that are - by our standards - habitable?

I am interested in the formation process of planetary systems and in the diverse physical and chemical properties of the ever-growing population of extrasolar planets that we discover. In particular, high-contrast imaging and/or high spatial resolution techniques at state-of-the-art ground-based telescopes such as the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile help me to directly image and study protoplanetary disks (the cradles of future planetary systems), to search for new extrasolar planets and to investigate the properties of known planetary mass objects outside our Solar System.

Selection of recent publications

(for comprehensive list click here)

2011:
• S. P. Quanz, S. M. Birkmann, D. Apai, S. Wolf, Th. Henning:
  "Resolving the inner regions of the HD97048 circumstellar disk with VLT/NACO polarimetric differential imaging"
  accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics; click here for preprint
• R. J. Parker, S. P. Quanz:
  "The effects of dynamical interactions on planets in young substructured star clusters"
  accepted for publication in MNRAS; click here for preprint
• S. P. Quanz, M. A. Kenworthy, M. R. Meyer, J. H. V. Girard, M. Kasper:
  "Searching for Gas Giant Planets on Solar System Scales: VLT NACO/APP Observations of the Debris Disk Host Stars HD172555 and HD115892"
  ApJL, Volume 736, Issue 2, article id. L32 (2011)
• S. P. Quanz, H. M. Schmid, K. Geissler, M. R. Meyer, Th. Henning, W. Brandner, S. Wolf:
  "VLT/NACO Polarimetric Differential Imaging of HD100546 - Disk Structure and Dust Grain Properties between 10-140 AU"
  ApJ, Volume 738, Issue 1, article id. 23 (2011)
2010:
• Buenzli, E.; Thalmann, C.; Vigan, A.; Boccaletti, A.; Chauvin, G.; Augereau, J. C.; Meyer, M. R.; Ménard, F.; Desidera, S.; Messina, S.; Henning, T.; Carson, J.; Montagnier, G.; Beuzit, J. L.; Bonavita, M.; Eggenberger, A.; Lagrange, A. M.; Mesa, D.; Mouillet, D.; Quanz, S. P.:
  "Dissecting the Moth: discovery of an off-centered ring in the HD 61005 debris disk with high-resolution imaging"
  A&A, Volume 524, 2010, id.L1
• M. Schmalzl, J. Kainulainen, S. P. Quanz, J. Alves, A. A. Goodman, Th. Henning, R. Launhardt, J. E. Pineda, C. G. Roman-Zuniga:
  "Star Formation in the Taurus Filament L 1495: From Dense Cores to Stars"
  ApJ, Volume 725, Issue 1, 2010, pp. 1327-1336
• S. P. Quanz, M. R. Meyer, M. A. Kenworthy, J. H. V. Girard, M. Kasper, A.-M. Lagrange, D. Apai, A. Boccaletti, M. Bonnefoy, G. Chauvin, P. M. Hinz, R. Lenzen:
  "First Results From VLT NACO Apodizing Phase Plate: 4-micron Images of the Exoplanet beta Pictoris b"
  ApJL, Volume 722, Issue 1, 2010, pp. 49-53
• S. P. Quanz, H. Beuther, J. Steinacker, H. Linz, S. M. Birkmann, O. Krause, Th. Henning, Q. Zhang:
  "A large, massive, rotating disk around an isolated young stellar object"
  ApJ, Volume 717, Issue 2, 2010, pp. 693-707
• S. P. Quanz, B. Goldman, Th. Henning W. Brandner, A. Burrows, L.W. Hofstetter:
  "Search for very low-mass brown dwarfs and free-floating planetary mass objects in Taurus"
  ApJ, Volume 708, Issue 1, 2010, pp. 770-784
2009:
• A.A. Schegerer, S. Wolf, C.A. Hummel, S.P. Quanz, A. Richichi:
  "Tracing the potential planet forming regions around seven pre-main-sequence stars"
  A&A, Volume 502, Issue 1, 2009, pp. 367-383

Selection of recent talks

2011:
• "Observations of Protoplanetary Accretion Disks" (invited talk)
  Geophysical and Astrophysical Fluid flow: Baroclinic Instability and Protoplanetary Accretion Disks; June 14-18, 2011; Ringberg Castle, Bavaria, Germany
• "Direct Imaging Search for Extrasolar Planets Using VLT/NACO's APP Coronagraph" (contributed talk)
  Exploring Strange New Worlds: From Giant Planets to Super Earths; May 1-6, 2011; High Country Conference Center, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
2010:
• "First lessons from direct imaging and spectroscopy of exoplanets" (contributed talk)
  Planetary Population Synthesis: The Predictive Power of Planet Formation Theory; November 29 - December 3, 2010; Ringberg Castle, Bavaria, Germany
• "Direct detection of exoplanets and circumstellar disks using NaCo APP and NaCo PDI" (contributed talk)
  In the Spirit of Lyot 2010: Direct Detection of Exoplanets and Circumstellar Disks; October 25-29, 2010; Paris, France