Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2023

DOI

10.3390/molecules28083362

Publication Title

Molecules

Volume

28

Issue

8

Pages

3362 (1-39)

Abstract

In this study, we present a current state-of-the-art review of middle-to-near IR emission spectra of four simple astrophysically relevant molecular radicals—OH, NH, CN and CH. The spectra of these radicals were measured by means of time-resolved Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in the 700–7500 cm−1 spectral range and with 0.07–0.02 cm−1 spectral resolution. The radicals were generated in a glow discharge of gaseous mixtures in a specially designed discharge cell. The spectra of short-lived radicals published here are of great importance, especially for the detailed knowledge and study of the composition of exoplanetary atmospheres in selected new planets. Today, with the help of the James Webb telescope and upcoming studies with the help of Plato and Ariel satellites, when the investigated spectral area is extended into the infrared spectral range, it means that detailed knowledge of the infrared spectra of not only stable molecules but also the spectra of short-lived radicals or ions, is indispensable. This paper follows a simple structure. Each radical is described in a separate chapter, starting with historical and actual theoretical background, continued by our experimental results and concluded by spectral line lists with assigned notation.

Rights

© 2023 by the authors.

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License.

Data Availability

Article states: Data available upon request.

Original Publication Citation

Civiš, S., Pastorek, A., Ferus, M., Yurchenko, S. N., & Boudjema, N.-I. (2023). Infrared spectra of small radicals for exoplanetary spectroscopy: OH, NH, CN and CH: The state of current knowledge. Molecules, 28(8), 1-39, Article 3362. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28083362

ORCID

0000-0001-7935-8571 (Pastorek)

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