[astro-ph.GA] Observations of O- and N-bearing molecules reveal systematic chemical differentiation across a wide range of interstellar environments.
This pattern is peculiar and its origin likely reflects a combination of physical conditions, chemical pathways, and observational effects rather than a single mechanism. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive overview of the current understanding of the N-bearing and O-bearing species and their relative behaviour in the interstellar medium, integrating results from observations, laboratory experiments, chemical modelling, and theoretical studies.
While inspired by discussions at the Lorentz Center workshop held in Leiden in August 2025, this work goes beyond a summary of the meeting and instead synthesizes the state of the field, highlights key open questions, and outlines future directions. We identify several key observational, experimental, and theoretical challenges that must be addressed to determine the origin of this chemical differentiation.
Schematic of the interdisciplinary framework addressing the N-bearing and O-bearing chemical dichotomy. This diagram illustrates how observations, laboratory experiments, computational quantum chemistry, and astrochemical models mutually constrain one another. By accounting for physical conditions (e.g., radiation fields, dynamics) and observational biases (e.g., radiative transfer, sensitivity limits), this integrated approach reveals the complex physical and chemical feedback processes at the root of the apparent dichotomy. — [astro-ph.GA]
Mathilde Bouvier, Joan Enrique-Romero, Marta De Simone
Comments: 23 pages, 5 figures, provisionally accepted as a Conference Summary in Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific
Subjects: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
Cite as: arXiv:2609.20551 [astro-ph.GA] (or arXiv:2609.20551v1 [astro-ph.GA] for this version)
https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2609.20551
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Submission history
From: Mathilde Bouvier
[v1] Thu, 17 Sep 2026 15:16:46 UTC (3,789 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.20551
Astrobiology, Astrochemistry,
