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Chris Byrohl

About

Chris Byrohl, PhD

Astrophysicist

KIPAC, Stanford University

Biography

I am a postdoctoral fellow at the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) at Stanford University, where I investigate galaxies in their embedding cosmic structure. To this end, I develop numerical tools and algorithms for running simulations and interpreting observations to test our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution since the Big Bang.

Before moving to Stanford, I worked at the Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics in Heidelberg after obtaining my PhD in 2021 at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in Eiichiro Komatsu's group.

Experience

Research Interests

  • Gas flows around galaxies and through the cosmic web
  • Simulations of galaxy formation and evolution
  • Radiative transfer and synthetic observations
  • Scientific software for data-intensive astrophysics
  • Thermonuclear supernovae

Education

PhD in Astrophysics

Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics / LMU Munich

November 2017–November 2021

Thesis: Radiative transfer simulations of Lyman-alpha photons in the Universe: application to cosmology and astrophysics

Advisors: Eiichiro Komatsu and Shun Saito

MSc in Physics

University of Göttingen

October 2015–October 2017

Visiting studies at UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2015–16

BSc in Physics

University of Göttingen

October 2011–September 2015

Visiting studies at the University of British Columbia, 2013–14

Selected Recognition

  • 2026

    GSO Leadership Fellowship

    Career development, leadership, communication, and networking program.

  • 2025–present

    KIPAC Postdoctoral Fellowship

    Postdoctoral research fellowship at Stanford University.

  • 2024/25

    JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship

    Six-month research fellowship at Kavli IPMU, Tokyo.

  • 2024

    Heidelberg Scientific Software Center Fellowship

    Support for the development of scida.

  • 2023

    Marsilius Kolleg Junior Fellowship

    Interdisciplinary research and science communication fellowship.

  • 2022–24

    Hector Fellow Academy Associated Fellowship

    Support for novel interdisciplinary research.

  • 2013/14

    DAAD North America Scholarship

    One-year scholarship for undergraduate studies at the University of British Columbia.

  • 2012–17

    Studienstiftung Scholarship

    Scholarship of the German Academic Scholarship Foundation for undergraduate and graduate studies.