Lucas Labadie

Lucas Labadie is a Professor of Experimental Physics at the I. Physics Institute of the University of Cologne, where he has been employed since 2011. He leads an active research group focused on observational astronomy and astrophysics, with particular emphasis on star and planet formation processes.

His educational background includes:

• 1997-2000: École de Physique de Marseille (now Ecole Centrale Marseille)
• 2000: DEA in Physics (Master's degree), Université Paul Cézanne, Marseille
• 2006: PhD in Physics & Astronomy, Université Grenoble Alpes

Professor Labadie's research spans multiple areas in astrophysics, with primary focus on protoplanetary disks, young stellar objects across the mass spectrum, and the development of high-angular resolution instrumentation. His work combines observational approaches with innovative instrumentation development, particularly in interferometry and astrophotonics. The research group employs techniques from optical to mid-infrared wavelengths to probe the physics of star and planet formation.

His publication record shows consistent contributions to the Astronomy & Astrophysics journal, with significant involvement in the GRAVITY Young Stellar Object Survey. Recent work focuses on disk structures around young stars, interferometric techniques, and astrophotonics applications. The publications demonstrate an evolution from studying individual objects to systematic surveys of young stellar populations.

Professor Labadie actively mentors students at all levels, supervising PhD candidates, master's students, and bachelor's students. His research is supported by grants from German funding agencies including DFG and BMBF, with involvement in major international projects like the Extremely Large Telescope instrumentation.

His group maintains active collaborations with major observatories and participates in the development of next-generation astronomical instruments, particularly METIS for the ELT and interferometric beam combiners. The team combines theoretical modeling with observational data and instrument development to address fundamental questions in star and planet formation.