The ortho-to-para ratio of H$_2$Cl$^+$: Quasi-classical trajectory calculations and new simulations in light of new observations

Abstract : Multi-hydrogenated species with proper symmetry properties can present different spin configurations, and thus exist under different spin symmetry forms, labeled as para and ortho for two-hydrogen molecules. We investigated here the ortho-to-para ratio (OPR) of H$_2$Cl$^+$ in the light of new observations performed in the z=0.89 absorber toward the lensed quasar PKS 1830-211 with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). Two independent lines of sight were observed, to the southwest (SW) and northeast (NE) images of the quasar, with OPR values found to be $3.15 \pm 0.13$ and $3.1 \pm 0.5$ in each region, respectively, in agreement with a spin statistical weight of 3:1. An OPR of 3:1 for a molecule containing two identical hydrogen nuclei can refer to either a statistical result or a high-temperature limit depending on the reaction mechanism leading to its formation. It is thus crucial to identify rigorously how OPRs are produced in order to constrain the information that these probes can provide. To understand the production of the H$_2$Cl$^+$ OPR, we undertook a careful theoretical study of the reaction mechanisms involved with the aid of quasi-classical trajectory calculations on a new global potential energy surface fit to a large number of high-level ab initio data. Our study shows that the major formation reaction for H$_2$Cl$^+$ produces this ion via a hydrogen abstraction rather than a scrambling mechanism. Such a mechanism leads to a 3:1 OPR, which is not changed by destruction and possible thermalization reactions for H$_2$Cl$^+$ and is thus likely to be the cause of observed 3:1 OPR ratios, contrary to the normal assumption of scrambling.
Type de document :
Article dans une revue
Astronomy and Astrophysics - A&A, EDP Sciences, 2017, pp.1

https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01583024
Contributeur : Nicolas Clementin <>
Soumis le : mercredi 6 septembre 2017 - 15:31:18
Dernière modification le : jeudi 26 avril 2018 - 14:20:03

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• HAL Id : hal-01583024, version 1
• ARXIV : 1708.08980

Citation

Romane Le Gal, Changjian Xie, Eric Herbst, Dahbia Talbi, Hua Guo, et al.. The ortho-to-para ratio of H$_2$Cl$^+$: Quasi-classical trajectory calculations and new simulations in light of new observations. Astronomy and Astrophysics - A&A, EDP Sciences, 2017, pp.1. 〈hal-01583024〉

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