High-resolution infrared spectra and rovibrational analysis of the ν band of propylene oxide.

The high-resolution infrared spectrum of the fundamental band ν (ring breathing) of the chiral molecule propylene oxide (CHCHCHO) was recorded at room temperature and under jet-cooled conditions using a quantum cascade laser at 8 μm. The observed lines with quantum numbers ≤ 55 and ≤ 21 were assigned to strong - and -type bands, and some low transitions were classified as weak -type transitions. The lines were fitted using a Watsons A-reduced Hamiltonian in the I representation.

Laboratory blueprints for interstellar searches of aromatic chiral molecules: rotational signatures of styrene oxide.

The tracking of symmetry-breaking events in space is a long-lasting goal of astrochemists, aiming at an understanding of homochiral Earth chemistry. One current effort at this frontier aims at the detection of small chiral molecules in the interstellar medium. For that, high-resolution laboratory spectroscopy data is required, providing blueprints for the search and assignment of these molecules using radioastronomy.