biostudies-literatureKirkby JSwiss National Science FoundationEuropean Research CouncilNatural Environment Research Council521-6https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC8384037biostudies-literatureUnknown533(7604)Atmospheric aerosols and their effect on clouds are thought to be important for anthropogenic radiative forcing of the climate, yet remain poorly understood. Globally, around half of cloud condensation nuclei originate from nucleation of atmospheric vapours. It is thought that sulfuric acid is essential to initiate most particle formation in the atmosphere, and that ions have a relatively minor role. Some laboratory studies, however, have reported organic particle formation without the intentional addition of sulfuric acid, although contamination could not be excluded. Here we present evidence for the formation of aerosol particles from highly oxidized biogenic vapours in the absence of sulfuric acid in a large chamber under atmospheric conditions. The highly oxygenated molecules (HOMs) arNatureIon-induced nucleation of pure biogenic particles.PMC8384037200020616075135307227463NE/K015966/1Gordon HSimon MDias AMolteni UWimmer DBreitenlechner MMakhmutov VCurtius JCarslaw KSHeinritzi MChen XRichards NAOrtega IKKurten AWorsnop DRSarnela NAdamov AVogel ALOnnela APerakyla OWagner RKangasluoma JStozhkov YSeinfeld JHKulmala MWagner PEAlmeida JWeingartner ECraven JHakala JWinkler PMDuplissy JPetaja TBrilke SSteiner GFrege CFlagan RCDonahue NMHoyle CRSchobesberger SLehtipalo KEhrhart SKim JBaltensperger UDommen JPringle KRondo LRap AWilliamson CMathot SVirtanen ASipila MKrapf MPiel FAmorim ARiipinen IBianchi FSengupta KLaaksonen AJokinen TStratmann FPraplan APWagner ACBernhammer AKFranchin AHansel ARissanen MPScott CETome AYe PZhang XKirkby JTrostl JYan CJunninen HFuchs CGuida RNieminen TfalseIon-induced nucleation of pure biogenic particles.Atmospheric aerosols and their effect on clouds are thought to be important for anthropogenic radiative forcing of the climate, yet remain poorly understood. Globally, around half of cloud condensation nuclei originate from nucleation of atmospheric vapours. It is thought that sulfuric acid is essential to initiate most particle formation in the atmosphere, and that ions have a relatively minor role. Some laboratory studies, however, have reported organic particle formation without the intentional addition of sulfuric acid, although contamination could not be excluded. Here we present evidence for the formation of aerosol particles from highly oxidized biogenic vapours in the absence of sulfuric acid in a large chamber under atmospheric conditions. The highly oxygenated molecules (HOMs) ar2016-01-01T00:00:00Z2016 May2026-07-09T11:21:43.672Z2026-07-09T10:46:37.233ZS-EPMC83840372722512510.1038/nature17953