Soft X-ray irradiation of methanol ice: Implication for H2CO formation in interstellar regions

Abstract

We performed 0.3 keV soft X-ray irradiation of a ethanol ice at 8 K under ultra-high vacuum conditions. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that soft X-rays are used to study photolysis of ice analogs. Despite the low irradiation dose of 10-6 photons molecule-1, the formation of formaldehyde has been observed. The results of our experiments suggest that X-rays may be a promising candidate to the formation of complex molecules in regions where UV radiation is severely inhibited. © 2010. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.