Planet formation and disk-planet interactions

TL;DR

This review summarizes the processes of planet formation, including dust growth, core accretion, gravitational instability, and disk-planet interactions, highlighting key stages from protoplanetary disks to mature planetary systems.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of planet formation theories and disk-planet interactions based on recent lectures, integrating observational and theoretical perspectives.

Findings

Dust particles grow into planetesimals and planetary cores.

Giant planets form via core accretion or gravitational instability.

Orbital dynamics are influenced by disk-planet interactions.

Abstract

This review is based on lectures given at the 45th Saas-Fee Advanced Course 'From Protoplanetary Disks to Planet Formation' held in March 2015 in Les Diablerets, Switzerland. Starting with an overview of the main characterictics of the Solar System and extrasolar planets, we describe the planet formation process in terms of the sequential accretion scenario. First the growth processes of dust particles to planetesimals and subsequently to terrestrial planets or planetary cores are presented. This is followed by the formation process of the giant planets either by core accretion or gravitational instability. Finally, the dynamical evolution of the orbital elements as driven by disk-planet interaction and the overall evolution of multi-object systems is presented.