Bruno M. B. Henriques - Zwicky fellow at the Institute of Astronomy, ETH Zurich

(NEW WEBSTIE: http://brunohenriques.webs.com/)

LGalaxies Webpages  

I work with all the physical processes needed in galaxy formation models to explain the observed population of galaxies from high redshift to the local Universe.

Lightcones for the latest version of the Munich semi-analytic model available here

http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/millennium (click on Database access, henriques2012a )

Research

Publications

From 06/2009 to 08/2010 I was a postdoc at the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation (ICG) in Portsmouth, in a Marie Curie Excellence Team, leaded by Claudia Maraston.  During this time my work was focused on The Impact of Evolutionary Population Synthesis Models in Semi-Analytic Predictions.

During my PhD, I have done some very interesting things...(groundbreaking some would say)

- I have introduced Monte Carlo Markov Chain parameter estimation techniques in a semi-analytic model of galaxy formation and used them to quantify for the first time the level of agreement between theory and observations.

- Using these techniques I checked the need for including tidal disruption of satellite galaxies in semi-analytic models. In fact, this new physical process increases the model likelihood when compared to data, removes the need for excessively strong supernova feedback by decreasing the number density of dwarf galaxies and produces stellar metallicities in perfect agreement with observations.

- I am currently studying the impact of stellar population synthesis models on the conversions from the intrinsic properties predicted by semi-analytic models into the observable properties. A crucial aspects of galaxy formation theory ignored for too many years...

Conferences

I did my PhD at the Astronomy Centre in the University of Sussex (January 2006 - June 2009), being supervised by Peter Thomas. 

I did my undergrad in the Faculty of Sciences in the University of Lisbon, from September 2001 to September 2005.