Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N)
Laboratory experiments on interstellar ice analogs have demonstrated that ice mixtures containing acetaldehyde (CH _3 CHO) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in the presence of ammonia (NH _3 ), water (H _2 O), or an NH _3 /H _2 O mixture allow the formation of the chiral molecule lactonitrile (2-hydroxypro...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adad54 |
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| author | A. Insausti E. R. Alonso L. Kolesniková A. Belloche I. León S. Mato |
| author_facet | A. Insausti E. R. Alonso L. Kolesniková A. Belloche I. León S. Mato |
| author_sort | A. Insausti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Laboratory experiments on interstellar ice analogs have demonstrated that ice mixtures containing acetaldehyde (CH _3 CHO) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in the presence of ammonia (NH _3 ), water (H _2 O), or an NH _3 /H _2 O mixture allow the formation of the chiral molecule lactonitrile (2-hydroxypropionitrile; CH _3 CH(OH)CN). These findings place lactonitrile among possible interstellar molecules, especially when its methyl-shortened derivative glycolonitrile and the precursors are known interstellar species. To support the search for lactonitrile in interstellar space, we present measurements under supersonic expansion conditions in the 6–16 GHz frequency range, along with a detailed analysis of its room-temperature rotational spectrum from 75 to 325 GHz. Improved and extended sets of molecular parameters, determined from the newly measured data and selected literature measurements, are obtained for two conformers of lactonitrile, with accuracies conducive to reliable interstellar searches. We report the nondetection of lactonitrile toward the main hot core Sgr B2(N1S), with a column density upper limit 1 order of magnitude higher than the upper limit derived for the related molecule glycolonitrile. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e7d8a32c8e514b7a9b6d8ed107423aa0 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-e7d8a32c8e514b7a9b6d8ed107423aa02025-08-20T03:11:22ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198116410.3847/1538-4357/adad54Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N)A. Insausti0E. R. Alonso1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5816-4102L. Kolesniková2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3567-0349A. Belloche3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0046-6217I. León4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1992-935XS. Mato5https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8200-7043Departamento de Química Física, Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU) , Barrio Sarriena s/n, 48940 Leioa, SpainGrupo de Espectroscopía Molecular (GEM), Edificio Quifima, Área de Química-Física, Laboratorios de Espectroscopía y Bioespectroscopía, Parque Científico UVa, Unidad Asociada CSIC, Universidad de Valladolid , Paseo de Belén 5, 47011 Valladolid, Spain ; elenarita.alonso@uva.esDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, University of Chemistry and Technology , Technická 5, 166 28 Prague 6, Czech Republic ; lucie.kolesnikova@vscht.czMax-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie (MPIfR) , Auf dem Hügel 69, 53121 Bonn, GermanyGrupo de Espectroscopía Molecular (GEM), Edificio Quifima, Área de Química-Física, Laboratorios de Espectroscopía y Bioespectroscopía, Parque Científico UVa, Unidad Asociada CSIC, Universidad de Valladolid , Paseo de Belén 5, 47011 Valladolid, Spain ; elenarita.alonso@uva.esGrupo de Espectroscopía Molecular (GEM), Edificio Quifima, Área de Química-Física, Laboratorios de Espectroscopía y Bioespectroscopía, Parque Científico UVa, Unidad Asociada CSIC, Universidad de Valladolid , Paseo de Belén 5, 47011 Valladolid, Spain ; elenarita.alonso@uva.esLaboratory experiments on interstellar ice analogs have demonstrated that ice mixtures containing acetaldehyde (CH _3 CHO) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in the presence of ammonia (NH _3 ), water (H _2 O), or an NH _3 /H _2 O mixture allow the formation of the chiral molecule lactonitrile (2-hydroxypropionitrile; CH _3 CH(OH)CN). These findings place lactonitrile among possible interstellar molecules, especially when its methyl-shortened derivative glycolonitrile and the precursors are known interstellar species. To support the search for lactonitrile in interstellar space, we present measurements under supersonic expansion conditions in the 6–16 GHz frequency range, along with a detailed analysis of its room-temperature rotational spectrum from 75 to 325 GHz. Improved and extended sets of molecular parameters, determined from the newly measured data and selected literature measurements, are obtained for two conformers of lactonitrile, with accuracies conducive to reliable interstellar searches. We report the nondetection of lactonitrile toward the main hot core Sgr B2(N1S), with a column density upper limit 1 order of magnitude higher than the upper limit derived for the related molecule glycolonitrile.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adad54Microwave spectroscopyRotational spectroscopyMillimeter-wave spectroscopyLaboratory astrophysics |
| spellingShingle | A. Insausti E. R. Alonso L. Kolesniková A. Belloche I. León S. Mato Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) The Astrophysical Journal Microwave spectroscopy Rotational spectroscopy Millimeter-wave spectroscopy Laboratory astrophysics |
| title | Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) |
| title_full | Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) |
| title_fullStr | Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) |
| title_short | Rotational Spectrum and Search for Lactonitrile toward Sgr B2(N) |
| title_sort | rotational spectrum and search for lactonitrile toward sgr b2 n |
| topic | Microwave spectroscopy Rotational spectroscopy Millimeter-wave spectroscopy Laboratory astrophysics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adad54 |
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