NaH and LiH in diffuse interstellar clouds.
Abstract
It has been suggested that NaH may be detectable in diffuse interstellar clouds. The photodissociation processes of NaH are discussed, and the rate of destruction by the interstellar radiation field is calculated. In the unshielded field, the mean lifetime is about 10 years. There appears to be no efficient gas-phase mechanism for the production of NaH. If it is produced with high efficiency on grain surfaces, abundances of the order of 10 billion per sq cm can be achieved. For LiH, a similar analysis leads to an upper limit of 1 million per sq cm.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- September 1978
- DOI:
- 10.1086/156391
- Bibcode:
- 1978ApJ...224..444K
- Keywords:
-
- Abundance;
- Interstellar Chemistry;
- Lithium Hydrides;
- Molecular Diffusion;
- Photodissociation;
- Sodium Hydrides;
- Chemical Reactions;
- Dipole Moments;
- Eigenvectors;
- Vibrational Spectra;
- Wavelengths;
- Astrophysics;
- Interstellar Clouds:Molecules