Infrared (IR) spectra of the hydrocarbon ices C3H8 (propane), C3H6 (propylene, propene), and C3H4 (propyne, methylacetylene) are relevant to the study of the lowtemperature chemistry and spectroscopy of objects within and beyond the Solar System, but IR band strengths and absorption coefficients are lacking for these compounds. Here we present new IR spectra of crystalline and non-crystalline forms of C3H8, C3H6, and C3H4. Measurements of ice density and refractive index also are reported, two quantities needed to compute IR absorption coefficients, band strengths, optical constants, and, ultimately, abundances of propane, propylene, and propyne in extraterrestrial environments and in laboratory experiments. Suggestions and interpretations are made regarding the multiple crystalline forms of propane and propylene observed. Applications and extensions are described.

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Infrared (IR) band strengths are needed to extract accurate molecular abundances from astronomical observations of interstellar and solar system ices. However, laboratory measurements of such intensities often have required multiple assumptions about ice composition and thickness. Here we describe a method that circumvents most of the common assumptions and uncertainties in IR band-strength determinations. We have applied the method to measure IR band strengths of OCS, H2S, and SO2 in the absence and presence of H2O ice at 10 K, the first measurements of their type. Our results show for the first time that the presence of H2O makes little difference in IR intensities for these three sulfur-containing molecules’ strongest IR features. The immediate application will be to laboratory studies of low-temperature chemistry of interstellar and cometary ices.