Research
As an astrophysicist my main research revolved around Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) and Lyman alpha emitters (LAEs) during (z>6) and after (z<6) the Epoch of Reionization (EoR). I used the LBGs and LAEs as probes of galaxy formation at these epochs. Using three dimensional spectroscopy (mainly from the MUSE IFU on VLT and the near-infrared grisms onboard Hubble) it is possible to probe the physics of galaxies over a large fraction of the lifetime of the Universe. Doing that, I helped piece together the puzzle of how galaxies formed and evolved. Using spectroscopic confirmations of LBGs, spectra of LAEs and their luminosity functions, it is furthermore possible to obtain general information about the intergalactic medium throughout the history of the Universe.
Some of the bigger questions I have tried to address with my research are:
- What are the properties of star forming galaxies in the early Universe, and at the Epoch of Reionization (EoR)?
- How do these compare to similar galaxies at intermediate and low redshift?
- What are the physical conditionas these galaxies live under?
- How do the properties of galaxies at high redshift correlate with the emission of Lyα from these objects?
- How does the ionizaing radiation they produce affect the inter-galactic medium and the general state of the Universe at the EoR?
- What role do active galactic nuclei play at high redshift?
- What are the physical properties, like for instance the ionization state, gas-phase metallicity, and powering mechanisms of galaxies at both cosmic dawn, noon and midday?
I have done my research as part of large surveys and international collaborations including the MUSE Consortium and The MUSE-Wide survey, The Grism Lens-Amplified Survey from Space (GLASS), The GLASS JWST ERS program and The Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) survey.
To get a larger overview and more details on individual topics a good place to start is my scientific publication record.