ÌÇÐÄVlogÆƽâ°æ

Coulomb crystals are surrounded by molecules used in the Lewandowski laboratory to study astrochemical reactions. Image Credit: Steven Burrows/Olivia Krohn and the Lewandowski group

The interstellar space between stars is far from empty, despite how it looks. Atoms and more reside in this ethereal environment known as the Interstellar Medium (ISM).

The ISM has fascinated scientists for decades, as at least 200 unique molecules form in its cold, low-pressure environment. It’s a subject that ties together the fields of chemistry, physics and astronomy, as scientists work to determine what types of chemical reactions happen there.

In the recently published cover article of the Journal of Physical Chemistry A, JILA Fellow and CU ÌÇÐÄVlogÆƽâ°æ Physics Professor Heather Lewandowski and former JILA graduate student Olivia Krohn analyzed chemical reactions in simulated ISM conditions by using Coulomb crystals, a cold pseudo-crystalline structure, where they hoped to learn what drove these interactions.