Vinyl cyanide (CH₂CHCN) in interstellar space: potential spectral lines for its detection

Area of Science:

• Astrophysics
• Molecular Spectroscopy
• Astrochemistry

Background:

• Vinyl cyanide (CH2CHCN) is a molecule with planar geometry and a significant electric dipole moment.
• Rotational transitions, particularly a-type, are crucial for detecting molecules in interstellar space.

Purpose of the Study:

• To calculate energies and radiative transition probabilities for vinyl cyanide rotational levels.
• To identify new spectral lines for the astrophysical search of vinyl cyanide.

Main Methods:

• Calculated energies for lower 120 rotational levels up to a specific energy threshold.
• Utilized rotational and centrifugal distortion constants, and electric dipole moment.
• Applied Sobolev Large Velocity Gradient analysis with scaled collisional rate coefficients.

Main Results:

• Identified 8 additional transitions for vinyl cyanide beyond the 4 known lines.
• Discovered 2 transitions exhibiting anomalous absorption and 6 showing emission features.
• Selected the strongest lines for potential astrophysical observation.

Conclusions:

• The identified spectral lines, especially those with anomalous absorption and emission, are significant for detecting vinyl cyanide in cosmic objects.
• This research provides valuable data for astrochemistry and the search for organic molecules in space.