Observations Of Phosphorus-bearing Molecules In The Interstellar Medium
The chemistry of phosphorus (31P) in space is particularly significant due to the key role it plays in biochemistry on Earth. Utilising radio and infrared spectroscopic observations, several key phosphorus-containing molecules have been detected in interstellar clouds, circumstellar shells, and even extragalactic sources.
Among these, phosphorus nitride (PN) was the first P-bearing molecule detected in space, and still is the species detected in the largest number of sources. Phosphorus oxide (PO) and phosphine (PH3) were also crucial species due to their role both in chemical networks and in forming biogenic compounds.
The still limited high-angular resolution observations performed so far are shading light on the geometrical distribution of these molecules, which represent crucial insights on their formation processes. Observations have also highlighted the challenges and complexities associated with detecting and understanding phosphorus chemistry in space, owing to the low elemental abundance of P relative to other elements.
This review article provides a state-of-art picture of the observational results obtained so far on phosphorus compounds in the interstellar medium. Special attention is given to star-forming regions, and to their implications for our understanding of prebiotic chemistry and the potential for life beyond Earth. Our knowledge of the dominant formation and destruction pathways of the most abundant species has improved, but critical questions remain open, among which: what is (are) the main phosphorus carrier(s) in space?
Upcoming facilities will offer new opportunities to both detect new phosphorus-bearing molecules and enlarge the number of sources in which the chemistry of P can be studied. The synergy between observations, models, laboratory experiments, and computational works is mandatory to progress in this field.
Top panels: Spectrum observed at 3 mm toward W51. The PO transitions are indicated with
blue vertical lines. Under the spectrum, zoom-in views of the PO transitions are highlighted. The red
line is the fit in local thermodynamic equilibrium with an excitation temperature of 35 K and an assumed source size of 12′′ Bottom panels: same as top panels for W3(OH). From Rivilla et al. (2016). — astro-ph.GA
Francesco Fontani (1 and 2 and 3) ((1) INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Italy, (2) Max-Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE), Germany, (3) LERMA, Observatoire de Paris, France)
Comments: 24 pages, 6 figures, Accepted review for Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences
Subjects: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
Cite as: arXiv:2407.19006 [astro-ph.GA] (or arXiv:2407.19006v1 [astro-ph.GA] for this version)
Submission history
From: Francesco Fontani
[v1] Fri, 26 Jul 2024 18:00:02 UTC (3,763 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2407.19006
Astrobiology, Astrochemistry,
