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Determine the rotational spectrum of the NSO radical

Determine the gas-phase rotational spectrum and spectroscopic constants (e.g., rest frequencies and dipole moments) of the NSO radical to enable targeted astronomical searches and quantitative modeling of NSO-bearing chemistry in the interstellar medium.

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Background

The paper reports the first interstellar detection of thionylimide (HNSO) and proposes that grain-surface formation via hydrogenation of the NSO radical is a likely pathway. However, the NSO radical has not been searched for astronomically because its rotational signatures have not been measured.

Knowing the rotational spectrum of NSO is essential to guide radioastronomical surveys, constrain chemical networks connecting nitrogen-, sulfur-, and oxygen-bearing species, and test proposed formation routes involving NSO in both gas-phase and grain-surface chemistry.

References

Concerning its production in the ISM, HNSO is most likely formed through the grain-surface reaction between the NSO radical --whose rotational signatures remain unknown and, therefore, it has not been searched for in the ISM so far-- and atomic hydrogen.

— Discovery of thionylimide, HNSO, in space: the first N-, S- and O-bearing interstellar molecule (2404.01044 - Sanz-Novo et al., 1 Apr 2024) in Section 4 (Discussion)