Related papers: Confirmation of interstellar phosphine towards asy…
Formamide (NH$_2$CHO) has previously been detected in several star-forming regions and is thought to be a precursor for different prebiotic molecules. Its formation mechanism is still debated, however. Observations of formamide, related…
The possible detection of C_{24}, a planar graphene, recently reported in several planetary nebulae by Garciaa-Hernandez et al. (2011, 2012) inspires us to explore whether and how much graphene could exist in the interstellar medium (ISM)…
The chemistry in the diffuse interstellar medium initiates the gradual increase of molecular complexity during the life cycle of matter. A key molecule that enables build-up of new molecular bonds and new molecules via proton-donation is…
According to the leading cosmological model, a first generation of stars called Population III (PopIII), condensed almost entirely out of hydrogen and helium, must have initiated the creation of all heavier chemical elements. Here we report…
We provide an overview of the latest advances in the study of phosphorus-rich stars, covering their detailed chemical abundance analyses and innovative mining approaches. Following the discovery of 16 low-mass and low-metallicity stars rich…
Context. Propyne (CH$_3$CCH) has been detected in a variety of environments, from Galactic star-forming regions to extragalactic sources. Such molecules are excellent tracers of the physical conditions in star-forming regions. Aims. This…
The interstellar medium is enriched primarily by matter ejected from evolved low and intermediate mass stars. The outflows from these stars create a circumstellar envelope in which a rich gas-phase and dust-nucleation chemistry takes place.…
Isomerism in complex organic molecules provides key insights into the formation mechanisms and physical conditions of the interstellar medium (ISM). Among the C$_2$H$_5$NO isomers, only acetamide and trans-N-methylformamide (trans-NMF) have…
Complex organic molecules (COM) are detected in many sources in the warm inner regions of envelopes surrounding deeply embedded protostars. Exactly how these COM form remains an open question. This study aims to constrain the formation of…
Being the backbone element of DNA, phosphorus is a key component in the search for life in the Universe. To aid in its detection, we present line emissivity ratios for the five lowest-lying forbidden [P~II] transitions, namely those among…
We report the detection of emission in the J=1-0 rotational transition of hydrogen fluoride (HF), together with observations of the J=1-0 to J=3-2 rotational lines of H35Cl and H37Cl, towards the envelope of the carbon star IRC +10216.…
For decades, the detection of phosphorus-bearing molecules in the interstellar medium was restricted to high-mass star-forming regions (as e.g. SgrB2 and Orion KL) and the circumstellar envelopes of evolved stars. However, recent…
Hydrocarbons play a key role in shaping the chemistry of the interstellar medium (ISM), but their enrichment and relationship with carbonaceous grains and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) still lack clear observational constraints.…
We present a theoretical investigation of the chemistry of fluorine-bearing molecules in diffuse and dense interstellar gas clouds. The chemistry of interstellar fluorine is qualitatively different from that of any other element, because -…
During the transition from the Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) to Planetary Nebulae (PN), the circumstellar geometry and morphology change dramatically. Another characteristic of this transition is the high mass loss rate, that can be…
The detection of a branched alkyl molecule in the high-mass star forming protocluster Sgr B2(N) permitted by the advent of ALMA revealed a new dimension of interstellar chemistry. Astrochemical simulations subsequently predicted that beyond…
To understand how Phosphorus-bearing molecules are formed in star-forming regions, we have analysed ALMA observations of PN and PO towards the massive star-forming region AFGL 5142, combined with a new analysis of the data of the comet…
Methyl isocyanate (CH$_{3}$NCO) belongs to a select group of interstellar molecules considered to be relevant precursors in the formation of larger organic compounds, including those with peptide bonds. The molecule has only been detected…
The study of phosphorus chemistry in the interstellar medium has become a topic of growing interest in astrobiology, because it is plausible that a wide range of P-bearing molecules were introduced in the early Earth by the impact of…
Non-metal nitrides are an exciting field of chemistry, featuring a significant number of compounds that can possess outstanding material properties. This characteristic relies on maximizing the number of strong covalent bonds, with…