Authors: Rijutha Jaganathan, Zeyuan Tang, Frederik Doktor S. Simonsen, Julianna Palotás, Jos Oomens, Bjørk Hammer and Liv Hornekær

Summary: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) might get functionalized with additional hydrogen atoms, during their lifetime in the interstellar medium (ISM). The hydrogenation of PAHs may significantly change their vibrational features. Molecular spectroscopic data of hydrogen functionalized PAHs are needed in order to identify them from astronomical observations. Here, we present gas-phase infrared multiple-photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectra of protonated 6, 13-dihydropentacene coupled with computed harmonic spectra. This study shows that the addition of H-atoms to the pristine pentacene introduces a change in the relative intensities of peaks and only minor changes in the peak positions. The position of the proton noticeably modifies the IR spectra of the species.

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