Laboratory study of carbonaceous dust and molecules of astrochemical interest

Franco Cataldo¹, D.A. García-Hern´ndez², A. Manchado² & S. Kwok³

¹Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania and Actinium Chemical Research, Rome, Italy
²Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, Spain
³The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Stars in the old stages of their life are able to produce complex carbonaceous organic compounds. The degree of complexity of this organic matter was not imagined by scientists just a few years ago. Here we review the experimental approach adopted in searching/characterizing the laboratory analogues of carbonaceous dust and molecules of astrochemical interest such as heavy petroleum fractions, cyanopolyynes/polyynes, fullerenes, and hydrogenated fullerenes (fullerAnes). The natural molecular model of the heavy petroleum fractions is quite seductive, providing a close match with the unidentified infrared (UIR) emission from certain proto-planetary nebulae. On the other hand, the laboratory study of cyanopolyynes and polyynes from the carbon arc suggests that the mechanism of formation of the polyynes in the carbon arc is the same occurring in the surroundings of the carbon-rich evolved stars. Finally, laboratory studies of C60 and C70 fullerenes - the largest organic molecules detected in space to date - and fullerene-related molecules such as fullerAnes and fullerene/PAH adducts have been conducted to characterize their IR spectra (i.e., absorption bands position, cross sections, temperature dependence, stability), which is crucial for identifying these molecules in space.

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