Interstellar PAHs and dust

Abstract

Interstellar dust and large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) molecules are important components of the Interstellar Medium of galaxies where, among other things, they regulate the opacity, influence the heating and cooling of neutral atomic and molecular gas, and provide active surfaces for chemistry. Through this interaction with gas, photons, and energetic ions, dust and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules influence key processes in the evolution of the interstellar medium and in turn are modified in their physical and chemical properties. This complex feedback drives the evolution of galaxies and its observational characteristics. In this chapter, our understanding of interstellar dust and large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules is described. Besides observations and their analysis, this chapter describes the physical processes involved, the life cycle of interstellar dust, and some aspects of the role of interstellar dust and PAHs in the evolution of the interstellar medium.