Astrochemistry

A High-resolution Spectroscopic Analysis Of Aminoacrylonitrile And An Interstellar Search Towards G+0.693

By Keith Cowing
Status Report
astro-ph.GA
May 31, 2023
Filed under , , , , ,
A High-resolution Spectroscopic Analysis Of Aminoacrylonitrile And An Interstellar Search Towards G+0.693
Energy level diagram of the two most stable isomers of 3-Amino-2-propenenitrile, Z-apn (left) and E-apn (right). — astro-ph.SR

Cyanides, ranging from three carbon atoms to PAHs, and alkenyl compounds are abundant in the interstellar medium (ISM). Aminoacrylonitrile (3-Amino-2-propenenitrile, H2N-CH=CH-CN), an alkenyl cyanide, thus represents a promising candidate for new interstellar detection.

A comprehensive spectroscopic laboratory investigation of aminoacrylonitrile in its rotational ground vibrational state has been herein performed. The measurements carried out up to the THz regime made it possible to generate a precise set of reliable rest frequencies for its search in space up to sub-millimetre wavelengths. The Z-aminoacrylonitrile (Z-apn) isomer spectrum has been recorded employing a source-modulated sub-millimetre spectrometer, from 80 GHz to 1 THz. A combination of Doppler and sub-Doppler measurement regimes allowed to record 600 new lines.

The collected data have enabled the characterisation of a set of spectroscopic parameters up to decic centrifugal distortion constants. The catalogue generated from the improved spectral data has been used for the search of Z-apn in the spectral survey of the G+0.693-0.027 molecular cloud located in the central molecular zone, in the proximity of the Galactic centre.

D. Alberton, V. Lattanzi, C. Endres, V. M. Rivilla, J.C. Guillemin, P. Caselli, I. Jiménez-Serra, J. Martín-Pintado

Subjects: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA); Solar and Stellar Astrophysics (astro-ph.SR)
Cite as: arXiv:2305.19641 [astro-ph.GA] (or arXiv:2305.19641v1 [astro-ph.GA] for this version)
Submission history
From: Davide Alberton
[v1] Wed, 31 May 2023 08:13:39 UTC (441 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2305.19641
Astrobiology, Astrochemistry

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