2004 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
UV-induced diamond formation in interstellar clouds
| Project/Area Number |
15340180
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Petrology/Mineralogy/Science of ore deposit
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| Research Institution | Hokkaido University |
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Principal Investigator |
KOUCHI Akira Hokkaido Univ., Institute of Low temperature Science, Prof., 低温科学研究所, 教授 (60161866)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
ARAKAWA Masahiiko Hokkaido Univ., Institute of Low temperature Science, Assistant Prof., 低温科学研究所, 助手 (10222738)
WATANABE Naoki Hokkaido Univ., Institute of Low temperature Science, Assistant Prof., 低温科学研究所, 助手 (50271531)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2003 – 2004
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| Keywords | diamond / carbonaceous chondrites / interstellar / clouds / amorphous ice |
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| Research Abstract |
New formation routes of diamond in interstellar clouds and parent bodies of carbonaceous chondrites are found based on laboratory experiments. It is shown that diamond precursor nucleated as a result of UV photolysis of interstellar ice mixtures in molecular clouds, and grew with further UV irradiation in diffuse clouds. The present study supports the occurrence of diamonds in interstellar clouds, and suggests that diamond is ubiquitous in space. Furthermore, we performed experiments on the aqueous alteration and the subsequent thermal metamorphism of organic materials formed in molecular cloud, and found that diamonds formed by this process in the parent bodies of carbonaceous chondrites. The various characteristics of nano-diamonds in chondrites and interplanetary dusts are well explained by these new formation routes.
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