A derivation of nano-diamond optical constants: Here be nano-diamonds

A. P. Jones; Nathalie Ysard

doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202141793

paper

A derivation of nano-diamond optical constants: Here be nano-diamonds

arXiv:2111.04492 · doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202141793

Abstract

% context {Nano-diamonds are an enticing and enigmatic dust component yet their origin is still unclear. They have been unequivocally detected in only a few astronomical objects, yet they are the most abundant of the pre-solar grains, both in terms of mass and number.} %aims {Our goal is to derive a viable set of nano-diamond optical constants and optical properties to enable their modelling in any type of astrophysical object where, primarily, the local (inter)stellar radiation field is well-determined.} % methods {The complex indices of refraction, $m (n, k)$ , of nano-diamonds, constrained by available laboratory measurements, were calculated as a function of size, surface hydrogenation, and internal (dis)order, using the THEMIS a-C(:H) methodology optEC $_{(s)}$ (a).} % results {To demonstrate the utility of the optical properties (the efficiency factors $Q_{ext}$ , $Q_{sca}$ , and $Q_{abs}$ ), calculated using the derived $m (n, k)$ data, we show that nano-diamonds could be abundant in the interstellar medium (ISM) and yet remain undetectable there.} % conclusions {The derived optical constants provide a means to explore the existence and viability of nano-diamonds in a wide range of astronomical sources. Here we show that up to a few percent of the available carbon budget could be hidden in the form of nano-diamonds in the diffuse ISM, in abundances comparable to the pre-solar nano-diamond abundances in primitive meteorites.}

arXiv comment17 pages, 8 figures, 4 tables

A derivation of nano-diamond optical constants: Here be nano-diamonds

Abstract

References in corpus (30)

Cited by in corpus (3)