Andrew Lipnicky

Nov 4, 2024 | nature.com | P. Bryan Changala |Edwin A. Bergin |Eric Herbst |Ryan A. Loomis |Ilsa R. Cooke |Andrew Lipnicky

AbstractPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are among the most widespread compounds in the universe, accounting for up to ~25% of all interstellar carbon. Since most unsubstituted PAHs do not possess permanent electric dipole moments, they are invisible to radio astronomy. Constraining their abundances relies on the detection of polar chemical proxies, such as aromatic nitriles. Here we report the detection of 2-cyanopyrene and 4-cyanopyrene, isomers of the recently detected 1-cyanopyrene.