New DFG-ANR project

A new collaborative project entitled "Diffusion of reactants on dust surfaces. A door to understanding surface chemistry in space" between the Analytical Mineralogy Group (PI Potapov) and the LIRA laboratory of CY Cergy Paris Université (PI Congiu) has been funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the French National Research Agency (ANR). The project will fill a crucial gap in astrophysical surface chemistry by systematically studying the diffusion of key astrochemical reactants (H, O, OH radicals; NH₃, CO₂ and H₂O molecules) on porous carbonaceous and silicate grains resembling cosmic dust grains in interstellar clouds, protostellar envelopes and protoplanetary discs. The potential results could also be related to chemical processes inside comets and asteroids.