| Abstract : | Understanding the physical and chemical conditions in the innermost regions of deeply embedded Class 0/I protostellar sources is of utmost importance to determine how molecular complexity develops in protostars and how far it progresses before the molecules are incorporated as ices into planetesimals in protoplanetary disks and delivered to planets in the habitable zone. We have investigated the physics and chemistry (origin/presence of complex organic molecules, including prebiotic molecules), in a sample of Class 0/I protostellar systems on solar system scales using the high sensitivity observations from Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). We also modeled the inner protostellar region using the Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (LTE) radiative transfer method and determined the column densities and excitation temperature of detected molecules. Our results show that low-mass protostellar sources are very rich in prebiotic as well as complex organic molecules, and their measured abundances are decided by local physical conditions, whereas for some, it is kinetics driven. Our work also allows us to search for ice absorption features for the same sources using JWST-MIRI and NIRSpec with GTO/GO programs to address whether complex species form initially in the ice, prior to star formation or are formed by hot gas-phase chemistry during the protostellar phase. |
