Group members

The current members of the Stellar Physics and Exoplanets research group are:

Senior scientists:

• Prof. Dr. Katja Poppenhaeger (head of Stellar Physics and Exoplanets); star-exoplanet systems, stellar magnetic activity, exoplanetary atmospheres, young stars, coronae
• Dr. Julián Alvarado-Gómez; observations and simulations of stellar coronal mass ejections, exoplanet atmospheres
• Dr. Silva Järvinen; magnetism of cool and hot stars (staff astronomer; ANDES-UBV instrument scientist)
• Dr. Matthias Steffen; stellar atmospheres, simulations
• Dr. Laura von Zadow; scientific coordinator

Postdocs:

• Dr. Nikoleta Ilić; star-planet interactions
• Dr. Iva Vilović; high-energy irradiation of exoplanets
• Dr. Fabio Lesjak; exoplanet high-resolution transmission spectroscopy

PhD students:

• Desmond Dsouza; stellar activity, binary systems
• Raghavan Gopalan; exoplanet evaporation
• Ilaria Civale, X-ray properties of exoplanet host stars
• Yuehong Chen (visiting PhD student); coronal mass ejections
• Zheng Sun (visiting PhD student); exo-space weather

Master and Bachelor students:

• Martinho Balboa Costa (master student): exoplanet evaporation
• Julius Göhring (master student); exoplanet engulfment

Completed theses

• “Localizing a giant flare on a young scallop-shell star”, Master thesis, Cinta Vidante, U Potsdam, 2025
• “An inside out view of the coronae and winds of cool stars”, PhD thesis, Judy Chebly, U Potsdam, 2024
• “The impact of stellar activity evolution on atmospheric mass loss of young exoplanets”, PhD thesis, Laura Ketzer, U Potsdam, 2024
• “Evolutionary scatter of magnetic activity in cool star twins”, Master thesis, Desmond Dsouza, U Potsdam, 2023
• “Stars under influence: evidence of tidal interactions between stars and substellar companions”, PhD thesis, Nikoleta Ilic, U Potsdam, 2023
• “Spectral features of Earth’s Atmosphere in Observations”, Master thesis, Joana Wokittel, FU Berlin, 2023
• “Analysis of facular to spot ratio of sun-like stars using Gradient of Power Spectra (GPS) method”, Master thesis, Prachi Rahate, U Potsdam, 2023
• “Clarifying the discrepant results in the characterization of exoplanetary atmospheres”, PhD thesis (with Strassmeier), Xanthippi Alexoudi, U Potsdam, 2023
• “High lights: stellar flares as probes of magnetism in stars and star-planet systems”, PhD thesis, Ekaterina Ilin, U Potsdam, 2022
• “X-ray studies of exoplanet systems”, PhD thesis, Grace Foster, U Potsdam, 2022
• “Bestimmung der Bahnverkippung der Muttersterne exosolarer heißer Gasplaneten”, Bachelor thesis, Julia Schötzig, TU Wildau, 2022
• “Atmospheric properties and dynamics of gaseous exoplanets inferred from high-resolution alkali line transmission spectroscopy”, PhD thesis (with Strassmeier), Engin Keles, U Potsdam, 2021
• “Are there clouds on Ultra Hot Jupiters?”, Master thesis, Alexandra Gillet, U Potsdam, 2021
• “Transits in the young system PTFO 8-8695, is there a planet?”, Master thesis, Marzie Hosseini, U Potsdam, 2021
• “The properties of transiting exoplanets”, PhD thesis, Rob Wells, Queen’s University Belfast, 2019
• “The magnetic activity evolution of main sequence cool stars”, PhD thesis, Rachel Booth, Queen’s University Belfast, 2019

Former long-term group members

• Dr. Ekaterina Ilin (PhD, postdoc, now at ASTRON / Vedantham’s group); low-mass stars, flares, star-planet systems
• Dr. Judy Chebly (PhD, now postdoc at CEA paris-Saclay / Strugarek’s group); simulations of stellar winds in star-exoplanet systems
• Dr. Engin Keles (PhD with Strassmeier, postdoc, now at TU Berlin / Noack’s group); exoplanet high-resolution transmission spectroscopy
• Dr. Eliana Amazo Gomez (postdoc); stellar magnetism and rotation
• Dr. Matthias Mallonn (postdoc, now at Forschungsträger Jülich); exoplanet photometry and spectroscopy
• Dr. Xanthippi Vada Alexoudi (PhD with Strassmeier, visitor in group); exoplanet transits
• Dr. Andy Gallagher (postdoc with Steffen); stellar atmospheres and abundances
• Dr. Grace Foster (PhD, now in data science); X-ray studies of exoplanet systems
• Dr. Yu Xu (visiting PhD student); coronal mass ejections
• Dr. Laura Ketzer (PhD, now permanent position in academic management); evaporation of young exoplanets
• Cinta Vidante (master student, now PhD student at MPIA); flares of young M dwarfs
• Cole Kilby (master student); machine learning and exoplanet spectroscopy

Talks by special guests

• Mar. 2024: Dr. Kristina Monsch on evolution of protoplanetary disks
• Jan. 2023: Marcus Marcussen and Prof. Dr. Simon Albrecht on exoplanets in perpendicular orbits
• Feb. 2022: Victoria diTomasso on exoplanet projects and the graduate student experience in the US
• Feb. 2020: Prof. Dr. Carolina von Essen on TESS light curve studies of exoplanet host stars
• Nov. 2019: Dr. Vera Dobos on tidal heating of exomoons