Theoretical study of radiative electron attachment to CN, C2H, and C4H radicals

TL;DR

This paper develops a first-principle theoretical model to study radiative electron attachment to certain radicals, calculating cross sections and rate coefficients, and comparing direct and indirect pathways for forming negative ions relevant in interstellar space.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive theoretical approach to quantify radiative electron attachment to radicals, including a model for the indirect pathway, and applies it to interstellar molecules.

Findings

Rate coefficients at 30 K: CN$^-$: 7e-16 cm^3/s, C$_2$H$^-$: 7e-17 cm^3/s, C$_4$H$^-$: 2e-16 cm^3/s

Indirect pathway contribution is small compared to the direct pathway

Calculated rates agree with recent photodetachment experimental data

Abstract

A first-principle theoretical approach to study the process of radiative electron attachment is developed and applied to the negative molecular ions CN$^-$, C$_4$H$^-$, and C$_2$H$^-$. Among these anions, the first two have already been observed in the interstellar space. Cross sections and rate coefficients for formation of these ions by radiative electron attachment to the corresponding neutral radicals are calculated. For completeness of the theoretical approach, two pathways for the process have been considered: (i) A direct pathway, in which the electron in collision with the molecule spontaneously emits a photon and forms a negative ion in one of the lowest vibrational levels, and (ii) an indirect, or two-step pathway, in which the electron is initially captured through non-Born-Oppenheimer coupling into a vibrationally resonant excited state of the anion, which then stabilizes by radiative decay. We develop a general model to describe the second pathway and show that its contribution to the formation of cosmic anions is small in comparison to the direct mechanism. The obtained rate coefficients at 30~K are $7\times 10^{-16}$cm$^3$/s for CN$^-$, $7\times 10^{-17}$cm$^3$/s for C$_2$H$^-$, and $2\times 10^{-16}$cm$^3$/s for C$_4$H$^-$. These rates weakly depend on temperature between 10K and 100 K. The validity of our calculations is verified by comparing the present theoretical results with data from recent photodetachment experiments.