Nuclear Structure Studies at ISOLDE and their Impact on the Astrophysical r-Process
Abstract
The focus of the present review is the production of the heaviest elements in nature via the r-process. A correct understanding and modeling requires the knowledge of nuclear properties far from stability and a detailed prescription of the astrophysical environment. Experiments at CERN/ISOLDE have played a pioneering role in exploring the characteristics of nuclear structure in terms of masses and beta-decay properties. Initial examinations paid attention to far unstable nuclei with magic neutron numbers related to r-process peaks, while present activities are centered on the evolution of shell effects with the distance from the valley of stability. We first show in site-independent applications the effect of both types of nuclear properties on r-process abundances. Then, we explore the results of calculations related to two different `realistic' astrophysical sites, (i) the supernova neutrino wind and (ii) neutron star mergers. We close with a list of remaining theoretical and experimental challenges needed to overcome for a full understanding of the nature of the r-process, and the role CERN/ISOLDE can play in this process.
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/9907071,
title = {Nuclear Structure Studies at ISOLDE and their Impact on the Astrophysical r-Process},
author = {K. -L. Kratz and B. Pfeiffer and F. -K. Thielemann and W. B. Walters},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/9907071},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
LATEX, 38 pages, 16 figures, submitted to Hyperfine Interactions