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arxiv: 1801.04228 · v1 · pith:CTEZJFJPnew · submitted 2018-01-12 · 🌌 astro-ph.GA

Detection of the Aromatic Molecule Benzonitrile (c-C₆H₅CN) in the Interstellar Medium

Brett A. McGuire , Andrew M. Burkhardt , Sergei Kalenskii , Christopher N. Shingledecker , Anthony J. Remijan , Eric Herbst , Michael C. McCarthy This is my paper
classification 🌌 astro-ph.GA
keywords aromaticbenzonitrilemoleculespolycyclicbandsemissioninfraredinterstellar
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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic nitrogen heterocycles are thought to be widespread throughout the Universe, because these classes of molecules are probably responsible for the unidentified infrared bands, a set of emission features seen in numerous Galactic and extragalactic sources. Despite their expected ubiquity, astronomical identification of specific aromatic molecules has proven elusive. We present the discovery of benzonitrile ($c$-C$_6$H$_5$CN), one of the simplest nitrogen-bearing aromatic molecules, in the interstellar medium. We observed hyperfine-resolved transitions of benzonitrile in emission from the molecular cloud TMC-1. Simple aromatic molecules such as benzonitrile may be precursors for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon formation, providing a chemical link to the carriers of the unidentified infrared bands.

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