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We present a 3D semi-analytic model of self-gravitating discs, and include a prescription for dust trapping in the disc spiral arms. Using Monte-Carlo radiative transfer we produce synthetic ALMA observations of these discs. In doing so we demonstrate that our model is capable of producing observational predictions, and able to model real image data of potentially self-gravitating discs. For a disc to generate spiral structure that would be observable with ALMA requires that the discs dust mass budget is dominated by millimetre and centimetre-sized grains. Discs in which grains have grown to the grain fragmentation threshold may satisfy this criterion, thus we predict that signatures of gravitational instability may be detectable in discs of lower mass than has previously been suggested. For example, we find that discs with disc-to-star mass ratios as low as $0.10$ are capable of driving observable spiral arms. Substructure becomes challenging to detect in discs where no grain growth has occurred or in which grain growth has proceeded well beyond the grain fragmentation threshold. We demonstrate how we can use our model to retrieve information about dust trapping and grain growth through multi-wavelength observations of discs, and using estimates of the opacity spectral index. Applying our disc model to the Elias 27, WaOph 6 and IM Lup systems we find gravitational instability to be a plausible explanation for the observed substructure in all 3 discs, if sufficient grain growth has indeed occurred.
The mechanism through which meter-sized boulders grow to km-sized planetesimals in protoplanetary discs is a subject of active research, since it is critical for planet formation. To avoid spiralling into the protostar due to aerodynamic drag, object
Gas giant planets may form early-on during the evolution of protostellar discs, while these are relatively massive. We study how Jupiter-mass planet-seeds (termed protoplanets) evolve in massive, but gravitationally stable (Q>1.5), discs using radiat
When imaged at high-resolution, many proto-planetary discs show gaps and rings in their dust sub-mm continuum emission profile. These structures are widely considered to originate from local maxima in the gas pressure profile. The properties of the u
We investigate how the detectability of signatures of self-gravity in a protoplanetary disc depends on its temporal evolution. We run a one-dimensional model for secular timescales to follow the disc mass as a function of time. We then combine this w
Large-scale, dust-trapping vortices may account for observations of asymmetric protoplanetary discs. Disc vortices are also potential sites for accelerated planetesimal formation by concentrating dust grains. However, in 3D discs vortices are subject