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Francois Lique

Publications and source records attributed to Francois Lique.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

Collisional excitation of H$_2$CO by He: Experimental validation of state-of-the-art scattering calculations

Non-local thermodynamic equilibrium conditions in the interstellar medium require collisional rate coefficients to model astronomical observations; these are usually determined from theoretical scattering calculations. The aim of this study is to measure experimentally low-temperature pressure-broadening cross-sections for the H$_2$CO-He system in order to validate the theoretical methodology involved in determining new collisional rate coefficients. The experiments employed the chirped-pulse in uniform supersonic flow method, and H$_2$CO is generated in situ by 193 nm excimer laser photolysis of tetrahydrofuran in cold He flows. State-of-the-art calculations are performed by computing a new potential energy surface for the H$_2$CO-He system which is subsequently implemented in scattering calculations using the close-coupling method to derive pressure broadening cross-sections and collisional rate coefficients. Excellent agreement between theory and experiment is obtained, with the calculated values falling within the 95 % confidence intervals of the experimental measurements. Such agreement validates the high accuracy of the theoretical data. Helium constitutes about 20 % relative to H$_2$ in the interstellar medium. The inclusion of collisional rate coefficients for H$_2$CO with He in radiative transfer modelling leads to variations in the excitation temperature of frequently detected rotational lines of up to 12 % in warm regions such as protostars.

astro-ph.IM↗
arXiv2026

Carbon chain diversity in L1544 and IRAS 16293-2422: an astrochemical pathfinder study for the SKAO

Astrochemical observations have revealed a surprisingly high level of chemical complexity, including long carbon chains, in the earliest stages of Sun-like star formation. The origin of these species and whether they undergo further growth, possibly contributing to the molecular complexity of planetary systems, remain open questions. We present recent observations performed using the 100-m Green Bank Telescope of the prestellar core L1544 and the protostellar system IRAS 16293-2422. In L1544, we detected several complex carbon-bearing species, including $\mathrm{C_2S}$, $\mathrm{C_3S}$, $\mathrm{C_3N}$, $\mathrm{c\text{-}C_3H}$, $\mathrm{C_4H}$, and $\mathrm{C_6H}$, complementing previously reported emission of cyanopolyynes. In IRAS 16293-2422, we detected $\mathrm{c\text{-}C_3H}$ and, for the first time, $\mathrm{HC_7N}$. Thanks to the high spectral resolution, we refine the rest frequencies of several $\mathrm{c\text{-}C_3H}$ and $\mathrm{C_6H}$ transitions. We perform radiative transfer analysis, highlighting a chemical difference between the two sources: IRAS 16293-2422 shows column densities 10-100 times lower than L1544. We perform astrochemical modeling, employing an up-to-date chemical network with revised reaction rates. The models reproduce the general trends, with cyanopolyyne and polyynyl radical abundances decreasing as molecular size increases, but they underestimate the abundances of cyanopolyynes longer than $\mathrm{HC_5N}$ by up to two orders of magnitude. Current models, which include the dominant neutral-neutral formation routes, cannot account for this discrepancy, suggesting that the chemical network is incomplete. We propose that additional ion-molecule reactions are crucial for the formation of these species. Developing a more comprehensive chemical network for long carbon chains is essential for accurately interpreting present and future observations.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2023

Cyanopolyyne chemistry in the L1544 prestellar core: new insights from GBT observations

We report a comprehensive study of the cyanopolyyne chemistry in the prototypical prestellar core L1544. Using the 100m Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT) we observe 3 emission lines of HC$_3$N, 9 lines of HC$_5$N, 5 lines of HC$_7$N, and 9 lines of HC$_9$N. HC$_9$N is detected for the first time towards the source. The high spectral resolution ($\sim$ 0.05 km s$^{-1}$) reveals double-peak spectral line profiles with the redshifted peak a factor 3-5 brighter. Resolved maps of the core in other molecular tracers indicates that the southern region is redshifted. Therefore, the bulk of the cyanopolyyne emission is likely associated with the southern region of the core, where free carbon atoms are available to form long chains, thanks to the more efficient illumination of the interstellar field radiation. We perform a simultaneous modelling of the HC$_5$N, HC$_7$N, and HC$_9$N lines, to investigate the origin of the emission. To enable this analysis, we performed new calculation of the collisional coefficients. The simultaneous fitting indicates a gas kinetic temperature of 5--12 K, a source size of 80$\arcsec$, and a gas density larger than 100 cm$^{-3}$. The HC$_5$N:HC$_7$N:HC$_9$N abundance ratios measured in L1544 are about 1:6:4. We compare our observations with those towards the the well-studied starless core TMC-1 and with the available measurements in different star-forming regions. The comparison suggests that a complex carbon chain chemistry is active in other sources and it is related to the presence of free gaseous carbon. Finally, we discuss the possible formation and destruction routes in the light of the new observations.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2019

Formation of interstellar SH$^+$ from vibrationally excited H$_2$: Quantum study of S$^+$ + H$_2$ $\rightleftarrows$ SH$^+$ + H reactions and inelastic collisions

The rate constants for the formation, destruction, and collisional excitation of SH$^+$ are calculated from quantum mechanical approaches using two new SH$_2^+$ potential energy surfaces (PESs) of $^4A''$ and $^2A''$ electronic symmetry. The PESs were developed to describe all adiabatic states correlating to the SH$^+$ ($^3Σ^-$) + H($^2S$) channel. The formation of SH$^+$ through the S$^+$ + H$_2$ reaction is endothermic by $\approx$ 9860 K, and requires at least two vibrational quanta on the H$_2$ molecule to yield significant reactivity. Quasi-classical calculations of the total formation rate constant for H$_2$($v=2$) are in very good agreement with the quantum results above 100K. Further quasi-classical calculations are then performed for $v=3$, 4, and 5 to cover all vibrationally excited H$_2$ levels significantly populated in dense photodissociation regions (PDR). The new calculated formation and destruction rate constants are two to six times larger than the previous ones and have been introduced in the Meudon PDR code to simulate the physical and illuminating conditions in the Orion bar prototypical PDR. New astrochemical models based on the new molecular data produce four times larger SH$^+$ column densities, in agreement with those inferred from recent ALMA observations of the Orion bar.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

Abundance of HCN and its C and N isotopologues in L1498

The isotopic ratio of nitrogen in nearby protoplanetary disks, recently measured in CN and HCN, indicates that a fractionated reservoir of nitrogen is available at the stage of comet formation. This reservoir presents a 3:1 enrichment in 15N relative to the elemental ratio of 330, identical to that between comets and the sun, suggesting that similar processes are responsible for the fractionation in the protosolar nebula (PSN) and in PSN analogs. However, how the fractionation of nitrogen takes place is an open question. Previously obtained HCN/HC15N abundance ratios suggest that HCN may be enriched in 15N in prestellar cores, although doubts remain on these measurements, which rely on the double-isotopologue method. Here we present direct measurements of the HCN/H13CN and HCN/HC15N abundance ratios in the L1498 prestellar core based on spatially resolved spectra of HCN(1-0), (3-2), H13CN(1-0), and HC15N(1-0). We use state-of-the-art radiative transfer calculations using ALICO, a 1D radiative transfer code capable of treating hyperfine (hf) overlaps. From an analysis of dust emission maps of L1498, we derive a new physical structure. We also use new, high-accuracy HCN-H2 hf collisional rates, which enable us to quantitatively reproduce all the features of the HCN(1-0) and HCN(3-2) spectra, especially the anomalous hf line ratios. Special attention is devoted to derive meaningful uncertainties on the abundance ratios. The obtained values, HCN/H13CN=45(3) and HCN/HC15N=338(28), indicate that carbon is fractionated in HCN, but nitrogen is not. For the HCN/HC15N abundance ratio, our study validates to some extent analyses based on the single excitation temperature assumption. Comparisons with other measurements suggest significant core-to-core variability. Furthermore, the 13C enrichment we found in HCN could explain the superfractionation of nitrogen measured in solar system chondrites.

astro-ph.GA↗