The development of infrared astronomy technologies in the 1970s revealed mysterious infrared emission bands ubiquitous in the interstellar medium of the Milky Way and other galaxies. Decades of research culminated in the formulation of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) hypothesis. A significant portion of all carbon in the galaxy is in the form of PAHs, tremendously stable organic molecules composed of aromatic carbon rings. PAHs are observable in outer space by distinct IR fluorescence signals emitted when pumped by UV radiation from nearby stars. PAH-rich gas clouds in interstellar space play a central role in the flow of matter in the galaxy and hold implications for the origins of organic and potentially pre-biotic chemistry. Infrared observational spectra can be deciphered with additional data from theoretical computation, in-situ nanosatellite missions to low earth orbit, and laboratory spectroscopy experiments. This presentation will focus on laboratory investigation of the PAH isoviolanthrene (C<sub>34</sub>H<sub>18</sub>). The infrared spectrum and photochemical stability of isoviolanthrene can be studied via argon matrix-isolation FTIR spectroscopy methods, a means to simulate interstellar medium conditions in a controlled laboratory environment.

Exploring the carbon chemistry of the galactic interstellar medium: Photochemical stability studies of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by argon matrix isolation spectroscopy

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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