Employing Soft X-rays in Experimental Astrochemistry
Abstract
The presence of soft x-rays is very important for the chemical evolution of interstellar medium and other astrophysical environments close to young and bright stars. Soft X-rays can penetrate deep in molecular clouds and protostellar disks and trigger chemistry in regions in which UV stellar photons do not reach. The effects of soft X-rays in astrophysical ices are also remarkable because they release secondary electrons in and on the surface of the ices, which trigger a new set or chemical reactions. In this chapter we will discuss firstly about the origin and relevance of soft X-rays in astrophysics. Next we will move to the effect of ionizing radiation in organic molecules present in astrophysical environment. We will discuss the use soft X-rays in astrochemistry laboratory studies at both gas- and solid-phase (ice). We will make a review covering our publications in this field, in particular, about the experiments employing time-of-flight spectroscopy (TOF-MS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and photon stimulated ion desorption (PSID-TOF-MS). This study help us to understand the chemical evolution several astrophysical regions and also put constrains in the researches related with the life's origin.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1112.1991,
title = {Employing Soft X-rays in Experimental Astrochemistry},
author = {Sergio Pilling and Diana P. P. Andrade},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1112.1991},
year = {2012}
}
Comments
34 pages, 25 figures and 2 tables. This a book chapter of "X-Ray Spectroscopy" ISBN:978-953-307-967-7; InTech Open Access Publisher (http://www.intechweb.org/). Edited by Shatendra K. Sharma. Publication date: December 2011