Mechanistic Organic Chemistry of Relevance to the Interstellar Medium.

有了这个更新奖，有机、有机和大分子化学项目和银河天文学项目支持威斯康星大学化学系Robert J. McMahon教授的工作。该研究将扩展PI对可能存在于星际介质（ISM）中的活性有机分子的合成和表征的研究。PI将合成碳链物种和缺氢芳烃，通过基质分离和ESR光谱结合量子化学计算对它们进行表征，并研究它们的光化学性质。由于漫反射星际波段，即近红外到近紫外波段的吸收，通常被假设是由漫反射ISM中的碳链分子或芳烃引起的，这些研究将有助于确定产生这些波段的特定分子的身份。这些高能分子的研究，包括与实验室天体物理学家的紧密合作，有望提供重要的基础信息，增加我们对星际分子和反应性中间体等物种动力学的理解。

With this renewal award, the Organic and Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program and the Galactic Astronomy Program supports the work of Professor Robert J. McMahon of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI. The research will extend the PI's studies of the synthesis and characterization of reactive organic molecules that may be present in the interstellar medium (ISM). The PI will synthesize carbon chain species and hydrogen deficient aromatics, characterize them by matrix isolation and ESR spectroscopy combined with quantum chemical calculations, and study their photochemistry. Since the diffuse interstellar bands, absorptions in the near-IR to near-UV, are often hypothesized to arise from either carbon chain molecules or aromatics in the diffuse ISM, these studies will aid in establishing the identity of the specific molecules responsible for these bands.These investigations of energetic molecules, which include strong partnerships with laboratory astrophysicists, are expected provide important fundamental information that will increase our understanding of interstellar molecules and of the dynamics of such species as reactive intermediates.