Star
formation
is one of the most exciting fields in astrophysics, especially the
formation of high-mass stars, which remains a puzzling subject. It is
still debated whether the most massive stars form via similar
disk-accretion processes like their low-mass counterparts, or whether
different physical processes like competitive accretion or the coalescence
of protostars come into play. Our work is dedicated to the investigation
of the earliest stages of massive star formation with special application
to the studies of potential massive disks, the initial fragmentation
processes of high-mass star-forming regions, core chemistry, magnetic
field properties and outflow/infall studies. High-mass star formation
proceeds in a clustered mode at typically large distances, and thus high
angular resolution is essential to spatially resolve the regions.
Furthermore, young massive star-forming regions are strong line and
continuum emitters at (sub)mm wavelengths. Therefore, we focus
on interferometric studies at (sub)mm wavelengths
(e.g., NOEMA, SMA,
CARMA, ALMA).
These processes are studied for a sample of regions in the
IRAM
NOEMA
large program
CORE. This
observational approach is accompanied by theoretical modeling of
massive disks and their associated cores. The arrival of
JWST
opens a new window for star formation research, and we are involved in
several guaranteed and open time projects.
In addition to
these small-scale structure, the group also works on larger spatial
scales associated with the formation of clouds as well as the Milky Way
structure as a whole. For these questions, we are part of larger survey
collaborations as well, for example, ATLASGAL
or THOR that are conducted with
observatories like APEX, VLA or Herschel.