Molecular processes from the AGB to the PN stage

García-Hernández, D. Anibal
Referencia bibliográfica

Planetary Nebulae: An Eye to the Future, Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union, IAU Symposium, Volume 283, p. 148-155

Fecha de publicación:
8
2012
Número de autores
1
Número de autores del IAC
1
Número de citas
12
Número de citas referidas
10
Descripción
Many complex organic molecules and inorganic solid-state compounds have been observed in the circumstellar shell of stars (both C-rich and O-rich) in the transition phase between Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars and Planetary Nebulae (PNe). This short (~102-104 years) phase of stellar evolution represents a wonderful laboratory for astrochemistry and provides severe constraints on any model of gas-phase and solid-state chemistry. One of the major challenges of present day astrophysics and astrochemistry is to understand the formation pathways of these complex organic molecules and inorganic solid-state compounds (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, fullerenes, and graphene in the case of a C-rich chemistry and oxides and crystalline silicates in O-rich environments) in space. In this review, I present an observational review of the molecular processes in the late stages of stellar evolution with a special emphasis on the first detections of fullerenes and graphene in PNe.