Using H3+ and H2D+ as probes of star-forming regions

Abstract

The H3+ and H2D+ ions are important probes of the physical and chemical conditions in regions of the interstellar medium where new stars are forming. This paper reviews how observations of these species and of heavier ions such as HCO+ and H3O+ can be used to derive chemical and kinematic properties of nearby pre-stellar cores, and the cosmic-ray ionisation rate toward more distant regions of high-mass star formation. Future prospects in the field are outlined at the end.

arXiv commentRefereed review, 6 pages, to appear in Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A

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Cited by in corpus (7)

• A computer program for fast non-LTE analysis of interstellar line spectra
• New extended deuterium fractionation model: assessment at dense ISM conditions and sensitivity analysis
• First Time-dependent Study of H2 and H3+ Ortho-Para Chemistry in the Diffuse Interstellar Medium: Observations Meet Theoretical Predictions
• Deuterium Fractionation as an Evolutionary Probe in Massive Proto-stellar/cluster Cores
• Experimental and theoretical studies of D + H${}_3^{+}$ $\to$ H${}_2$D${}^{+}$ + H
• Using deuterated H3+ and other molecular species to understand the formation of stars and planets
• Problems of Star Formation Theory and Prospects of Submillimeter Observations