FELIX provides insight into the stability of molecules

22 June 2011
Researchers from the FOM Institute for Plasma Physics Rijnhuizen have provided more clarity about the stability of carbocations. They did this by determining the structure of one of these organic ions with the free electron laser FELIX. Information about electronic and geometric stability is fundamentally important for organic chemistry but can also contribute to knowledge about interstellar gas clouds in the universe. The researchers will publish their results in August in the leading German journal Angewandte Chemie.

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Interstellar nebulae are considered to be the incubators in which new stars are born. IR emission spectra indicate that these nebulae might contain large quantities of ionised aromatic compound. The photo shows the large nebula in the Orion constellation. Photo: NASA, ESA, M. Robberto (Space Telescope Science Institute/ESA) and Hubble Space Telescope Orion Treasury Project Team