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Prof. Dr. Peter Schilke

I. Physikalisches Institut
Universität zu Köln
Zülpicherstr. 77
50937 Köln
Room 206a

  • Phone: +49 221 / 470 1935
  • Email: schilke (at) ph1.uni-koeln.de

I am at the University of Cologne since March 2009.  My scientific life before consisted of

  • 1992 PhD at University of Bonn (done at MPIfR under the supervision of Malcolm Walmsley)
  • 1992-1995 Research Fellow in Physics at Caltech (at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory, inTom Phillips' group)
  • 1995-1997 Postdoc at the I. Physikalisches Institut
  • 1997-2009 Scientist at Max-Planck-Institut for Radioastronomy (MPIfR) in the Menten Group

where I was project scientist for APEX.

My research is centered on

  • Formation of High-Mass Stars
  • Astrochemistry
  • Formation of Molecular Clouds
  • Interstellar medium

particularly on the modeling of observing data.  I am Project leader of Project C3 in the  SFB 956, involved in projects A4 and A6, was co-I of Herschel/HIFI and have been involved there in the GT KPs HEXOS and CHESS.  From 1997 to 2010 I have been member of various ALMA committees, among the Science Software Requirements, ESAC and ASAC and various review committees. Of particular interest are the following instruments/projects

While in the past I have used

which still have a lot of interesting and unreduced data, these days I concentrate on research conducted with ALMA, and plan for CCAT-prime, where we are a partner.  The current research projects of the group are found here.

Currently I am the chair of the Bachelor of Science Examination Board in Cologne, and from 2017-2022 I was Member of the Referee Board of the German Ministry for Education and
Science on Earth-bound astrophysics and astro particle physics as well as the DLR Referee Board Verbundforschung Astronomie und Astrophysik.

In the summer term 2020 I received the Albertus-Magnus teaching award in physics.