Ionization of Organics in Cryogenic Water-Ices: Relevance to Planetary Astronomy and Astrobiology

Details Ionization of Organics in Cryogenic Water-Ices: Relevance to Planetary Astronomy and Astrobiology Ionization of Organics in Cryogenic Water-Ices: Relevance to Planetary Astronomy and Astrobiology

May 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006agusm.p23a..02g&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #P23A-02

Physics

4852 Photochemistry, 5422 Ices, 6020 Ices, 6045 Physics And Chemistry Of Materials, 7823 Ionization Processes (2423)

Scientific paper

Water-rich, mixed molecular ices are common throughout interstellar molecular clouds, the Solar System, and atmospheric aerosols. Laboratory analog experiments have shown vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) irradiation and particle bombardment of water dominated mixed molecular ices containing impurities such as CH3OH, NH3, CO and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) produce complex organic species, including important biogenic molecules such as amino acids and functionalized PAHs which may have played a role in the origin of life. In an attempt to understand the fundamental processes that occur during VUV processing of water dominated mixed molecular ices containing organic (PAH) impurities, several new and so far unknown phenomena were recently discovered in our laboratory. (a) PAHs embedded in cryogenic water ice are easily and efficiently ionized (>80%, i.e., near quantitative ion yields) to the cation form by VUV photons; (b) PAH ionization energy is lowered by up to 2 eV compared to the gas-phase, in agreement with recent theoretical predictions; (c) PAH cations are stabilized to temperatures as high as 120 K; and (d) Multiple ionization of large aromatic molecules leading to PAH dications and their stabilization in water ice. These new findings will be discussed and their relevance to planetary ices and astrobiology will be outlined.

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