Molecular dynamics and kinetics
Abstract
Small dust grains, nano-sized up to micrometer sized, are ubiquitous in our Universe. They can catalyze chemical reactions and they are essential for how our Universe evolves. The formation, evolution and destruction mechanisms of these grains are largely unknown but knowledge of these processes are of crucial importance for understanding for instance the formation of stars and planets, and thus of the basis of our own very existence. The grains are also essential for formation of the many molecules found in interstellar space, in particular the more complex ones. These can be precursors of life bearing biomolecules found on Earth.
This project focuses on chemical kinetics and molecular dynamics computations, with a focus on conditions relevant to outer space, including very low density regions and temperatures ranging from 10 K up to about 10 000 K. Important will be understanding formation, growth and destruction of the small dust grains mentioned above as well as reactions occuring on them and in the ambient gas. Often this requires, as a prerequisite, electronic structure calculations in order to create potential energy data for reactions paths or even global potential energy surfaces. The project is supported by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg (KAW) foundation and performed in collaboration with astronomers at Chalmers.
