Speaker
Description
The low temperature (<20 K) and high density (n>10^4 cm^-3) of dense molecular clouds cause simple gas-phase species to freeze onto dust grains. The so-formed ices are then subjected to a variety of processes that may increase their chemical complexity. Among them, UV photons and low-energy cosmic rays trigger the formation of both simple and more complex species [1, 2], including interstellar-complex organic molecules (iCOMs), [3]. In the further stages of star-formation, both thermal and non-thermal desorption processes cause the injection of solid-phase compounds into the gas-phase, allowing their detection by means of radiotelescopes [4, 5].
SKA will allow to search for iCOMs in star-forming regions and protoplanetary disks, allowing us to shed light on the chemical complexity and the distribution of molecules in these regions [6, 7].
The Laboratory for Experimental Astrophysics at the INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania is currently working on a new experimental setup to simulate the exposure to energetic ions and UV-photons of ices in molecular clouds and to investigate the formation of iCOMs. Ices will be then injected in the gas-phase and analyzed by means of mass spectrometry.
We will show the ongoing activities and some scientific cases that show the importance of solid-phase chemistry in the formation of molecules in star-forming regions.
[1] Rothard, H. et al. 2017, J. of Phys. B, Atom. Molec. Optic. Phys. 50, 6, 062001
[2] Urso, R. G., et al. 2022, A&A, 668, A169
[3] Caselli, P., & Ceccarelli, C. 2012, A&ARv, 20, 56
[4] Palumbo, M.E. et al. 2008, ApJ, 685, 2, 1033
[5] Urso, R.G. et al. 2019, A&A, 628, A72
[6] Codella, C. et al. 2015, AASKA14, 9-13 June 2014, id. 123
[7] Testi, L. et al. 2015, AASKA14, 9-13 June 2014, id. 117
| Reasearch area | Cradle of Life |
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