The Abundance of SiC2 in Carbon Star Envelopes

Abstract

AbstractSilicon carbide dust grains are ubiquitous in circumstellar envelopes around C-rich AGB stars. However, the main gas-phase precursors leading to the formation of SiC dust have not yet been identified. To date, only three molecules containing an Si–C bond have been identified to have significant abundances in C-rich AGB stars: SiC2, SiC, and Si2C. The ring molecule SiC2 has been observed in a handful of evolved stars, while SiC and Si2C have only been detected in the C-star envelope IRC +10216. We aim to study how widespread and abundant SiC2, SiC, and Si2C are in envelopes around C-rich AGB stars and whether or not these species play an active role as gas-phase precursors of silicon carbide dust in the ejecta of carbon stars.