Rotational de-excitation of tricarbon monosulfide (C3S) in collision with (He): potential energy surface and rates

Abstract

Despite that the tricarbon monosulfide (C3S) is among the first sulfur-containing carbon-chain molecules to be detected in the interstellar medium, no studies focused on the determination of its collisional rates. These rate coefficients are essential to estimate the abundance of C3S in the interstellar medium. Computations of the C3S(^{1}Sigma^{+}) downward rate coefficients, induced by collision with He, are performed by averaging the integral cross sections at low temperature (below 25~text{K}). Calculations of the cross sections in the close-coupling quantum time independent formalism for E_{c}leq110~text{cm}^{-1} and Jleq10 are based on a new 2-D potential energy surface. This PES is obtained from the explicit correlated coupled cluster with a single, double and perturbative triple excitation [ccsd(t)-f12] ab initio approach and the aug-cc-pVTZ basis sets. The PES have a global minimum of -55.69~text{cm}^{-1} located at R=6.25 bohr and theta=94^{circ}, and a second minimum of -36.95~text{cm}^{-1} at R=9.35 bohr and theta=0^{circ}. A comparison of C3S rates with those of the isoelectronic molecule C3O was made. The results indicate a great temperature dependence of the rates for transitions of Delta J>2. We expect that the new collisional data will allow for accurate determination of the C3S abundance in several interstellar regions.