Diffuse Interstellar Bands: How Are They Related to Known Gas-Phase Constituents of the ISM?

Abstract

In this brief review of recent work relating the DIBs to other gas-phase constituents of the ISM, we explore correlations between DIB equivalent widths and the column densities of various atomic and molecular species, drawn from a large database constructed for that purpose. The tightness and slopes of the correlations can provide information on how the DIBs might be related to those species (physically, chemically, spatially) and on various properties of the DIB carriers. Deviations from the mean relationships can reveal dependences of DIB strengths on other parameters, regional variations in DIB behavior, and individual sight lines where unusual environmental conditions affect the DIBs. Variations in DIB profiles (e.g., wings, substructure) and relative strengths may be related to differences in physical conditions inferred from atomic and/or molecular absorption lines.

10 pages, 6 figures; to appear in "The Diffuse Interstellar Bands" (proceedings of IAU Symposium No. 297)

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Cited by in corpus (6)

• The Apache Point Observatory Catalog of Optical Diffuse Interstellar Bands
• The Behavior of Selected Diffuse Interstellar Bands with Molecular Fraction in Diffuse Atomic and Molecular Clouds
• Are the Carriers of Diffuse Interstellar Bands and Extended Red Emission the same?
• Correlation between UV resilience and wavelength of narrow DIBs
• A Deep Search for a Strong Diffuse Interstellar Band in the Circumgalactic Medium
• On the relationship between the continuum of interstellar extinction curves, the 2200 Å bump, and the diffuse interstellar bands