Related papers: Revisiting the reactivity between HCO and CH$_3$ o…
Interstellar complex organic molecules (iCOMs) are assumed to be mainly formed on dust-grain surfaces. However, neutral gas-phase reactions in the interstellar medium (ISM) can play an important role. In this paper, by investigating the…
The results of experiments on the formation of molecular hydrogen on low density and high density amorphous ice surfaces are analyzed using a rate equation model. The activation energy barriers for the relevant diffusion and desorption…
We present new models of the deuterium chemistry in protoplanetary disks, including, for the first time, multiply deuterated species. We use these models to explore whether observations in combination with models can give us clues as to…
Experimental results on the formation of molecular hydrogen on amorphous silicate surfaces are presented and analyzed using a rate equation model. The energy barriers for the relevant diffusion and desorption processes are obtained. They…
Experimental and computational chemistry are two disciplines to conduct research in Astrochemistry, providing essential reference data for both astronomical observations and modeling. These approaches not only mutually support each other,…
The laboratory work presented here, simulates the chemistry on icy dust grains as typical for the 'CO freeze-out stage' in dark molecular clouds. It differs from previous studies in that solid-state hydrogenation and vacuum…
Understanding water deuterium fractionation is important for constraining the mechanisms of water formation in interstellar clouds. Observations of HDO and H$_2^{18}$O transitions were carried out towards the high-mass star-forming region…
We present experimental constraints on the insertion of oxygen atoms into methane to form methanol in astrophysical ice analogs. In gas-phase and theoretical studies this process has previously been demonstrated to have a very low or…
Spectroscopic studies play a key role in the identification and analysis of interstellar ices and their structure. Some molecules have been identified within the interstellar ices either as pure, mixed, or even as layered structures.…
We explore the energetics of the titular reaction, which current astrochemical databases consider open at typical dense molecular (i.e., dark) cloud conditions. As is common for reactions involving the transfer of light particles, we assume…
Dimethyl ether is one of the most abundant interstellar complex organic molecules. Yet its formation route remains elusive. In this work, we have performed electronic structure and kinetics calculations to derive the rate coefficients for…
The icy mantles of interstellar dust grains are the birthplaces of the primordial prebiotic molecular inventory that may eventually seed nascent solar systems and the planets and planetesimals that form therein. Here, we present a study of…
(Abridged) JWST observations have measured the ice composition toward two highly-extinguished field stars in the Chamaeleon I cloud. The observed extinction excess on the long-wavelength side of the H2O ice band at 3 micron has been…
The density functional theory (DFT) is the most versatile electronic structure method used in quantum chemical calculations, and is increasingly applied in astrochemical research. This mini-review provides an overview of the applications of…
Aims. We investigate the dominant formation mechanism of H2CO and CH3OH in the Horsehead PDR and its associated dense core. Methods. We performed deep integrations of several H2CO and CH3OH lines at two positions in the Horsehead, namely…
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…
Radical recombination has been proposed to lead to the formation of complex organic molecules (COMs) in CO-rich ices in the early stages of star formation. These COMs can then undergo hydrogen addition and abstraction reactions leading to a…
Although still poorly understood, the chemistry that occurs on the surfaces of interstellar dust particles profoundly affects the growth of molecules in the interstellar medium. An important set of surface reactions produces icy mantles of…
The origin and evolution of organic molecules represent a pivotal issue in the fields of astrobiology and astrochemistry, potentially shedding light on the origins of life. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), with its exceptional…
Recent interferometer observations have found that the D2O/HDO abundance ratio is higher than that of HDO/H2O by about one order of magnitude in the vicinity of low-mass protostar NGC 1333-IRAS 2A, where water ice has sublimated. Previous…