Probing the Missing Link between the Diffuse Interstellar Bands and the Total-to-Selective Extinction Ratio $R_V$ $-$ I. Extinction versus Reddening

TL;DR

This study investigates the relationship between diffuse interstellar band (DIB) strength and the total-to-selective extinction ratio $R_V$, revealing that their correlation depends on how DIB strength is normalized, which impacts understanding of DIB carriers.

Contribution

It clarifies the dependence of DIB strength on $R_V$ by showing the importance of normalization method, challenging previous anticorrelation findings and advancing the understanding of DIBs' nature.

Findings

DIB strength and $R_V$ are not related when using reddening-normalized EW.

Previous anticorrelation was due to different normalization methods.

The appropriate normalization for DIB EW is crucial for interpreting their relation to extinction.

Abstract

The carriers of the still (mostly) unidentified diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) have been a long-standing mystery ever since their first discovery exactly 100 years ago. In recent years, the ubiquitous detection of a large number of DIBs in a wide range of Galactic and extragalactic environments has led to renewed interest in connecting the occurrence and properties of DIBs to the physical and chemical conditions of the interstellar clouds, with particular attention paid to whether the DIB strength is related to the shape of the interstellar extinction curve. To shed light on the nature and origin of the DIB carriers, we investigate the relation between the DIB strength and $R_V$, the total-to-selective extinction ratio, which characterizes how the extinction varies with wavelength (i.e., the shape of the extinction curve). We find that the DIB strength and $R_V$ are not related if we represent the strength of a DIB by its reddening-normalized equivalent width (EW), in contrast to the earlier finding of an anticorrelation in which the DIB strength is measured by the extinction-normalized EW. This raises a fundamental question about the appropriate normalization for the DIB EW.