New findings shed light on the chemical evolution of the Earth

The sun as a source of energy, and catalysts to accelerate chemical reactions, were of critical importance in the emergence of the first biochemical molecules on Earth. A research team has now shown that a solid deposited from ammonia and methane plasma is capable of using light energy for amine-to-imine conversions. This process might have played an important role in the creation of the first biomolecules. The study has been published in the journal Angewandte Chemie.