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Description
C-cyanomethanimine (HNCHCN), existing in the two Z and E isomeric forms, is a key prebiotic molecule, but, so far, only the E isomer has been detected towards the massive star forming region Sagittarius B2(N) using transitions in the radio wavelength domain. With the aim of detecting HNCHCN in Sun-like star-forming regions, the laboratory investigation of its rotational spectrum has been extended to the milllimeter-/submillimeter-wave (mm-/submm-) spectral window where several unbiased spectral surveys have been already obtained. High-resolution laboratory measurements of the rotational spectrum of C-cyanomethanimine were carried out in the 100-420GHz range using a frequency-modulation absorption spectrometer. The C-cyanomethanimine spectral features were then searched for in the mm-wave range using the high-sensitivity and unbiased spectral surveys obtained with the IRAM 30-m antenna in the ASAI context, the earliest stages of star formation from starless to evolved Class I objects being sampled. For both the Z and E isomers, the spectroscopic work has led to an improved and extended knowledge of the spectroscopic parameters, thus providing accurate predictions of the rotational signatures up to ~700GHz. So far, no C-cyanomethanimine emission has been detected towards the ASAI targets, and upper limits on the column density of 10^11^-10^12^cm^-2^ could only be derived. Consequently, the C-cyanomethanimine abundances have to be less than a few 10^-10^ for starless and hot-corinos. A less stringent constraint, <=10^-9^, is obtained for shocks sites. The combination of the upper limits on the abundances of C-cyanomethanimine together with accurate laboratory frequencies up to ~700GHz poses the basis for future higher sensitivity searches around Sun-like star forming regions. For compact (typically less than 1 arcsec) and chemically enriched sources such as hot-corinos, the use of interferometers as NOEMA and ALMA in their extended configurations are clearly needed.
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