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Description
We present the results of the measurement of nitrogen fractionation in a sample of infrared-dark clouds (IRDCs) cores which are believed to be the precursors of high-mass stars and star clusters. We observed the J=1-0 transitions of HCN, H^13/^CN, HC^15/^N, HN^13/^C, and H^15/^NC towards a sample of 22 cores in four IRDCs using the IRAM 30m telescope.Assuming LTE and a temperature of 15K, the 14N/^15/^N ratios measured are consistent with the terrestrial atmosphere(TA) and protosolar nebula(PSN) values, and with the ratios measured in low-mass prestellar cores. However, the 14N/^15/^N ratios measured in cores C1, C3, F1, F2, and G2 do not agree with the results from similar studies towards the same cores using nitrogen bearing molecules with nitrile functional group(-CN) and nitrogen hydrides (-NH) although the ratio spread covers a similar range. Relatively low 14N/^15/^N ratios amongst the four-IRDCs were measured in IRDC G which are comparable to those measured in small cosmomaterials and protoplanetary disks. The low average gas density of this cloud suggests that the gas density, rather than the gas temperature, may be the dominant parameter influencing the initial nitrogen isotopic composition in young PSN.
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