Related papers: Nitrogen superfractionation in dense cloud cores
We aim to determine the $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N and $^{12}$C/$^{13}$C ratios for HCN in six starless and prestellar cores and compare the results between the direct method using radiative transfer modeling and the indirect double isotope method…
The origin of the heavily fractionated reservoir of nitrogen in comets remains an issue in the theory of their formation and hence of the solar system. Whether the fractionated reservoir traced by comets is inherited from the interstellar…
Our aim is to measure the interstellar 14N/15N ratio across the Galaxy, to establish a standard data set on interstellar ammonia isotope ratios, and to provide new constraints on the Galactic chemical evolution. The (J, K ) = (1, 1), (2,…
We report the first detection of C$^{15}$N in diffuse molecular gas from a detailed examination of CN absorption lines in archival VLT/UVES spectra of stars probing local diffuse clouds. Absorption from the C$^{15}$N isotopologue is…
We have observed the J=3-2 transition of N2H+ and N2D+ to investigate the trend of deuterium fractionation with evolutionary stage in three selected regions in the Infrared Dark Cloud (IRDC) G28.34+0.06 with the Submillimeter Telescope…
The properties of the ices that form in dense molecular clouds represent an important set of initial conditions in the evolution of interstellar and preplanetary matter in regions of active star formation. Of the various spectral features…
Photodissociation of 14N2 and 14N15N occurs in interstellar clouds, circumstellar envelopes, protoplanetary discs, and other environments due to UV radiation from stellar sources and the presence of cosmic rays. This source of N atoms…
Organic material found in meteorites and interplanetary dust particles is enriched in D and 15N. This is consistent with the idea that the functional groups carrying these isotopic anomalies, nitriles and amines, were formed by ion-molecule…
We present new radio-frequency interferometric maps of emission from the 14NH3, 15NH3, and 14NH2D isotopologues of ammonia, and the 12CH3OH and 13CH3OH isotopologues of methanol toward Sgr B2(N). With a resolution of ~3'' (0.1 pc), we are…
Element isotopic ratios are powerful tools to reconstruct the journey of planetary material, from the parental molecular cloud to protoplanetary disks, where planets form and accrete their atmosphere. Radial variations in isotopic ratios in…
We present a new gas-grain chemical model for the combined isotopic fractionation of carbon and nitrogen in molecular clouds, in which the isotope chemistry of carbon and nitrogen is coupled with a time-dependent description of spin-state…
Detections of extragalactic $^{15}$N are reported from observations of the rare hydrogen cyanide isotope HC$^{15}$N toward the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the core of the (post-) starburst galaxy NGC 4945. Accounting for optical depth…
The isotopic ratio of nitrogen measured in primitive Solar System bodies shows a broad range of values, the origin of which remains unknown. One key question is whether these isotopic reservoirs of nitrogen predate the comet formation stage…
Context. The nitrogen isotopic ratio is considered an important diagnostic tool of the star formation process, and $N_2H^+$ is particularly important because it is directly linked to molecular nitrogen $N_2$. However, theoretical models…
We present very high signal-to-noise ratio absorption-line observations of CN and CH+ along 13 lines of sight through diffuse molecular clouds. The data are examined to extract precise isotopologic ratios of 12CN/13CN and 12CH+/13CH+ in…
Each of the nitriles present in the atmosphere of Titan can be expected to exhibit different \ce{^{14}N/^{15}N} values depending on their production processes, primarily because of the various \ce{N2} dissociation processes induced by…
Observations of low mass protostars which probe small enough size scales to be within likely CO depletion regions show the highest [NH2D]/[NH3] ratios yet measured, of 4--33%. These molecular D/H ratios are higher than those measured on…
With the 30-m IRAM radio telescope, we observed several massive star forming regions at wavelengths of 3-4 and 2 mm. The temperature of the gas in the sources was estimated from the lines of CH$_{3}$CCH and from the transitions of the…
Carbon containing molecules in cold molecular clouds show various levels of isotopic fractionation through multiple observations. To understand such effects, we have developed a new gas-grain chemical model with updated 13C fractionation…
Deuterium fractionation in molecular ions, in particular HCO+, has been extensively used to estimate the degree of ionization in molecular clouds. This paper reviews recent work on ionization degree in homogeneous clouds. We will show that…