Complex Interstellar Molecules: Their Synthesis and Utility as Probes of Star Formation

受最近观测发现的启发，该研究项目将通过计算研究星际复杂有机分子（COMs）的形成。这项研究的结果将使天文学家了解COMs是如何在星际云中形成的，以及在星际空间的极端条件下建立的分子复杂性水平。该项目将在计算天体化学研究的先进技术方面培训研究生和本科生，并将包括推广活动，以提高天体化学在更广泛的科学界和公众中的知名度。研究小组将研究一系列新的气相和固相化学过程，并为纳入大型天体化学网络生成速率和理论公式。对形成机制的研究将有助于对星际云和恒星形成区域分子的高角度分辨率研究进行定量解释，从而使有关COMs形成的各种不同观点能够通过统一、全面的模型得到检验。该项目的成果还将使利用大量公共投资建造的天文设施成为可能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Motivated by recent observational findings, this research project will investigate computationally the formation of interstellar complex organic molecules (COMs). Results from the study will allow astronomers to understand how COMs are formed in interstellar clouds and the level of molecular complexity that builds under the extreme conditions of interstellar space. The project will train graduate and undergraduate students in advanced techniques of computational astrochemical research, and it will include outreach activities to enhance the visibility of astrochemistry in the broader scientific community and the public.The research team will investigate a range of new gas-phase and solid-phase chemical processes and generate rates and theoretical formulations for incorporation into large-scale astrochemical networks. The formation mechanisms investigated will enable quantitative interpretation of high angular resolution studies of molecules in interstellar clouds and star-forming regions, allowing competing ideas on the formation of COMs to be tested by means of unified, comprehensive models. Results from the project would also enable effective exploitation of astronomical facilities built with significant public investment.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.