Related papers: Cosmic-ray ionization of molecular clouds
Stars and planets form within cold, dark molecular clouds. In these dense regions, where starlight cannot penetrate, cosmic rays (CRs) are the dominant source of ionization -- driving interstellar chemistry(Dalgarno (2006, PNAS, 103,…
Low-energy cosmic rays, in particular protons with energies below 1 GeV, are significant drivers of the thermochemistry of molecular clouds. However, these cosmic rays are also greatly impacted by energy losses and magnetic field transport…
Low-energy cosmic rays ($E\lesssim 1$ GeV) are responsible for the ionisation and heating of molecular clouds. While the role of supra-thermal electrons produced in the ionisation process in inducing excitation of the ambient gas (mostly…
This paper deals with the cosmic-ray penetration into molecular clouds and with the related gamma--ray emission. High energy cosmic rays interact with the dense gas and produce neutral pions which in turn decay into two gamma rays. This…
Observations of the emission of the carbon cycle species (C, C+ CO) are commonly used to diagnose gas properties in the interstellar medium but are significantly sensitive to the cosmic-ray ionization rate. The carbon-cycle chemistry is…
Molecular clouds act as targets for cosmic rays (CR), revealing their presence through either gamma-ray emission due to proton-proton interactions, and/or through the ionization level in the cloud, produced by the CR flux. The ionization…
In recent years, exciting developments have taken place in the identification of the role of cosmic rays in star-forming environments. Observations from radio to infrared wavelengths and theoretical modelling have shown that low-energy…
The H$_2$ ionisation rate in the central molecular zone, located in the Galactic centre, is estimated to be $\zeta\sim2\times10^{-14}~\mathrm{s}^{-1}$, based on observations of H$_3^+$ lines. This value is two to three orders of magnitude…
Dissociation of molecular hydrogen by secondary electrons produced by cosmic ray or X-ray ionization plays a crucial role in the chemistry of the densest part of molecular clouds. Here we study the effect of the mean kinetic energy of…
It is argued that if cosmic rays penetrate into molecular clouds, the total energy they lose can exceed the energy from galactic supernovae shocks. It is shown that most likely galactic cosmic rays interacting with the surface layers of…
We assess the ionising effect of low energy protostellar cosmic rays in protoplanetary disks around a young solar mass star for a wide range of disk parameters. We assume a source of low energy cosmic rays located close to the young star…
Cosmic rays are the main agents in controlling the chemical evolution and setting the ambipolar diffusion time of a molecular cloud. We summarise the processes causing the energy degradation of cosmic rays due to their interaction with…
Recent studies have suggested that low-energy cosmic rays (CRs) may be accelerated inside molecular clouds by the shocks associated with star formation. We use a Monte Carlo transport code to model the propagation of CRs accelerated by…
The propagation of high-energy cosmic rays through giant molecular clouds constitutes a fundamental process in astronomy and astrophysics. The diffusion of cosmic-rays through these magnetically turbulent environments is often studied…
Cosmic rays (CRs) at sub-TeV energies play a fundamental role in the chemical and dynamical evolution of molecular clouds, as they control the ionisation, dissociation, and excitation of H$_{2}$. Their characterisation is important both for…
Molecular clouds interacting with supernova remnants may be subject to a greatly enhanced irradiation by cosmic rays produced at the shocked interface between the ejecta and the molecular gas. Over the past decade, broad-band observations…
Cosmic rays are crucial for the chemistry of molecular clouds and their evolution. They provide essential ionizations, dissociations, heating and energy to the cold, dense cores. As cosmic rays pierce through the clouds they are attenuated…
The main signature of the interaction between cosmic rays and molecular clouds is the high ionisation degree. This decreases towards the densest parts of a cloud, where star formation is expected, because of energy losses and magnetic…
Cosmic rays (CRs) are the primary driver of ionization in star forming molecular clouds (MCs). Despite their potential impacts on gas dynamics and chemistry, no simulations of star cluster formation following the creation of individual…
Cosmic rays (CR) play an important role in dense molecular cores, affecting their thermal and dynamical evolution and initiating the chemistry. Several studies have shown that the formation of protostellar discs in collapsing clouds is…