Nitrogen and hydrogen fractionation in high-mass star forming cores from observations of HCN and HNC

TL;DR

This study measures nitrogen and hydrogen isotope ratios in high-mass star-forming cores using IRAM-30m observations, finding no clear link between chemical evolution and isotope fractionation, and no correlation between D/H and $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratios.

Contribution

First comprehensive measurement of nitrogen and hydrogen isotope ratios across different evolutionary stages of high-mass star-forming cores.

Findings

$^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratios are approximately 359 in HCN and 438 in HNC.

No trend of isotope ratios with evolutionary stage.

No correlation between D/H and $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratios.

Abstract

The ratio between the two stable isotopes of nitrogen, $^{14}$N and $^{15}$N, is well measured in the terrestrial atmosphere ($\sim 272$), and in the pre-Solar nebula ($\sim 441$). Interestingly, some pristine Solar System materials show enrichments in $^{15}$N with respect to the pre-Solar nebula value. However, it is not yet clear if, and how, these enrichments are linked to the past chemical history, due to the limited number of measurements in dense star-forming regions. In this respect, dense cores believed to be precursors of clusters containing also intermediate- and high-mass stars are important targets, as the Solar System was probably born within a rich stellar cluster. In this work, we show the results of IRAM-30m observations of the J=1-0 rotational transition of the molecules HCN and HNC, and their $^{15}$N-bearing counterparts, towards 27 intermediate/high-mass dense cores divided in three evolutionary categories: high-mass starless cores, high-mass protostellar objects, and ultra-compact HII regions. We have also observed the DNC(2-1) rotational transition, in order to search for a relation between the isotopic ratios D/H and $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N. We derive average $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratios of $359\pm16$ in HCN and of $438\pm21$ in HNC, with a dispersion of about 150-200. We find no trend of the $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratio with the evolutionary stage. This result agrees with what found from N$_{2}$H$^{+}$ and its isotopologues in the same sources, although the $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N ratios from N$_{2}$H$^{+}$ show a dispersion larger than that in HCN/HNC. Moreover, we have found no correlation between D/H and $^{14}$N/$^{15}$N in HNC. These findings indicate that: (1) the chemical evolution does not seem to play a role in the fractionation of nitrogen; (2) the fractionation of hydrogen and nitrogen in these objects are not related.