This thesis takes steps toward understanding the interaction between gas-phase and solid-state molecules in star- and planet-forming regions. Chapter 1 and 2 provide the reader with an introduction... Show moreThis thesis takes steps toward understanding the interaction between gas-phase and solid-state molecules in star- and planet-forming regions. Chapter 1 and 2 provide the reader with an introduction and in-depth description of methods used in subsequent chapters. Chapter 3 and 4 present the spectroscopic infrared characterization of acetaldehyde, dimethyl ether, ethanol, and methyl formate in the solid state, both pure and mixed in astronomically relevant matrices. This characterization will allow for probing of the solid-state organic inventory of star- and planet-forming regions with the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope. Interferometric observations of the protoplanetary disk around TW Hya with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array are presented in Chapter 5. These results hint that the observed gas-phase formaldehyde is formed in the gas phase, contrary to the generally accepted solid-state formation. Chapter 6 provides an insight to the interaction between gas-phase carbon monoxide and solid-state hydroxyl radicals on the surface of vacuum-UV irradiated water ice. Even tough residence times of carbon monoxide are short, they are sufficient to allow reactions with hydroxyl radicals and produce carbon dioxide. This process could explain the lack of gas-phase carbon monoxide in protoplanetary disks and the presence of carbon dioxide mixed in solid-state water. Show less
The primary focus of this thesis is the formation of low-mass protostars, specifically the earliest deeply embedded phase, when material from the collapsing envelope is still accreted onto the... Show moreThe primary focus of this thesis is the formation of low-mass protostars, specifically the earliest deeply embedded phase, when material from the collapsing envelope is still accreted onto the growing young star. Rotational transitions of CO and O2 data are obtained by the Herschel Space Observatory key projects, WISH and HOP, together with ground-based observations from APEX and the JCMT. We have found that CO and its isotopologs have different line profiles tracing different materials in the protostellar regions. Our new high-J rotational transitons of CO is key to characterize the warmer parts of the protostellar envelope and quantify feedback of the protostars on their surroundings in terms of shocks, ultraviolet (UV) heating, photodissociation, and outflow dispersal. Radiative transfer modeling was performed to determine the CO abundance structure in the envelope, showing evidence for significant freeze-out in the coldest regions in the parts of the envelope where the temperature exceeds 25 K. A tentative detection of O2 is reported toward the source position of a protostar, which originates from the surrounding cloud. These kind of detailed studies of the physical and chemical structure of low-mass protostars are important for a complete understanding of the evolution of young stellar objects (YSOs). Show less
The formation of snow and ice has always intrigued humans and challenged them to study these phenomena. Every snowflake has its own unique history of formation, but no two are alike. Like snow... Show moreThe formation of snow and ice has always intrigued humans and challenged them to study these phenomena. Every snowflake has its own unique history of formation, but no two are alike. Like snow-crystals, interstellar ices consist predominantly of water (H2O), but also contain significant fractions of other molecules such as carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), and methanol (CH3OH), and traces of dinitrogen (N2) and ammonia (NH3). The presence, or absence, of a molecule in the ice strongly depends on the environmental conditions. Vice versa, these molecules have an influence on their environment as well. Hence, the chemical composition and the structure of interstellar ices are thought to contain valuable information about the past and the future of interstellar regions, and it is for this reason that interstellar ices are simulated and studied under laboratory conditions. The present thesis contains a study of laboratory analogs of interstellar ices and presents a newly developed apparatus that provides a novel laboratory route to investigate the properties of these ices in more detail than has previously been possible. Show less
