The HNC/HCN ratio in star-forming regions
- Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22901 (United States)
HNC and HCN, typically used as dense gas tracers in molecular clouds, are a pair of isomers that have great potential as a temperature probe because of temperature dependent, isomer-specific formation and destruction pathways. Previous observations of the HNC/HCN abundance ratio show that the ratio decreases with increasing temperature, something that standard astrochemical models cannot reproduce. We have undertaken a detailed parameter study on which environmental characteristics and chemical reactions affect the HNC/HCN ratio and can thus contribute to the observed dependence. Using existing gas and gas-grain models updated with new reactions and reaction barriers, we find that in static models the H + HNC gas-phase reaction regulates the HNC/HCN ratio under all conditions, except for very early times. We quantitatively constrain the combinations of H abundance and H + HNC reaction barrier that can explain the observed HNC/HCN temperature dependence and discuss the implications in light of new quantum chemical calculations. In warm-up models, gas-grain chemistry contributes significantly to the predicted HNC/HCN ratio and understanding the dynamics of star formation is therefore key to model the HNC/HCN system.
- OSTI ID:
- 22356805
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 787, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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