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Definition
The absorption of a UV (or X-ray) photon by a molecule condensed on a surface can result in its desorption (direct photodesorption) or in the “kick-out” of a nearby molecule (indirect photodesorption). In space, photodesorption can regulate the locations of “snow-lines,” the transition regions where the dominant phase of volatiles changes from gas to ice (particularly in protoplanetary disks). Photodesorption, from ices and other surfaces that mimic interstellar grain compositions, is characterized experimentally to determine molecule-specific desorption efficiencies and mechanisms.
Overview
In dense and cold regions in space, atoms and molecules freeze out on interstellar grains, forming icy mantles that continue to evolve chemically. Photodesorption connects the surface/ice chemistry with the gas phase in regions that are too cold for efficient thermal ice evaporation. In the presence of strong radiation fields, photodesorption...
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References and Further Reading
Andersson S, van Dishoeck EF (2008) Photodesorption of water ice. A molecular dynamics study. J Astron Astrophys 491:907–916
Andrade DPP, Rocco MLM, Boechat-Roberty HM (2010) X-ray photodesorption from methanol ice. Mon Not R Astron Soc 409:1289–1296
Avouris P, Walkup RE (1989) Fundamental mechanisms and desorption and fragmentation induced by electronic transitions at surfaces. Annu Rev Phys Chem 40:173–206
Bertin M, Fayolle EC, Romanzin C, Öberg KI, Michaut X, Moudens A, Philippe L, Jeseck P, Linnartz H, Fillion J-H (2012) UV photodesorption of interstellar CO ice analogues: from excitation to surface desorption. Phys Chem Chem Phys 14:9929–9935
Hama T, Yokoyama M, Yabushita A, Kawasaki M, Andersson S, Western CM, Ashfold MNR, Dixon RN, Watanabe N (2010) A desorption mechanism of water following vacuum-ultraviolet irradiation on amorphous solid water at 90 K. J Chem Phys 132:164508–164616
Öberg KI, Visser R, van Dishoeck EF, Linnartz H (2009a) Photodesorption of ices. II. H2O and D2O. Astrophys J 93:1209–1218
Öberg KI, van Dishoeck EF, Linnartz H (2009b) Photodesorption of ices. I. CO, N2 and CO2. J Astron Astrophys 496:281–293
Westley MS, Baragiola RA, Johnson RE, Baratta GA (1995) Photodesorption from low-temperature water ice in interstellar and circumsolar grains. Nature 373:405–407
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Öberg, K.I. (2014). Photodesorption. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1195-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1195-4
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Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4
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Chapter history
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Latest
Photodesorption- Published:
- 16 March 2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1195-5
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Original
Photodesorption- Published:
- 29 April 2015
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1195-4