Related papers: Capitalizing on Nuclear Data Libraries' Comprehens…
We study the enrichment of the interstellar medium with rapid neutron capture (r-process) elements produced in binary neutron star (BNS) mergers. We use a semi-analytic model to describe galactic evolution, with merger rates and time delay…
The astrophysical origin of the rapid neutron-capture process (r-process), which produces about half of the elements heavier than iron, remains uncertain. The oldest, most metal-poor stars preserve the chemical signatures of early…
I show that recent observations of r-process abundances in metal-poor stars are difficult to explain if neutron star mergers (NSMs) are the major r-process sources. In contrast, such observations and meteoritic data on Hf182 and I129 in the…
Identifying the cosmic origin of rapid neutron-capture (r-process) elements remains an open problem. Binary neutron-star (BNS) mergers and rare classes of core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) represent the main contenders as major r-process…
The chemical compositions of evolved stars in Local Group dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs) provide insight into the galaxy's past star formation and nucleosynthesis. Neutron-capture element abundances are especially interesting. In…
Recent radiative lifetime measurements accurate to +/- 5% (Stockett et al. 2007, J. Phys. B 40, 4529) using laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) on 8 even-parity and 62 odd-parity levels of Er II have been combined with new branching fractions…
All of the actinides and roughly half the natural abundance of elements with mass number A > 70 come from the rapid neutron capture process, or the r-process. If the r-process, as suggested by many, occurs deep in a supernova, then it is…
The r-process involves neutron-rich nuclei far off stability for which no experimental cross sections are known. Therefore, one has to rely on theory which might be prone to considerable uncertainties far off stability. To investigate the…
The r-process involves neutron-rich nuclei far off stability for which no experimental cross sections are known. Therefore, one has to rely on theory. The difficulties in the predictions are briefly addressed. To investigate the impact of…
The prediction of isotopic abundances resulting from the rapid neutron capture process (r-process) requires high-precision mass measurements. Using TITAN's on-line time-of-flight spectrometer, first time mass measurements are performed for…
Star-to-star dispersion of r-process elements has been observed in a significant number of old, metal-poor globular clusters. We investigate early-time neutron-star mergers as the mechanism for this enrichment. Through both numerical…
Abundance observations indicate the presence of rapid-neutron capture (i.e., r-process) elements in old Galactic halo and globular cluster stars. These observations provide insight into the nature of the earliest generations of stars in the…
Recent observations of heavy elements produced by rapid neutron capture (r-process) in the halo have shown a striking and unexpected behavior: within a single star, the relative abundances of r-process elements heavier than Eu are the same…
Neutron star (NS) merger ejecta offer a viable site for the production of heavy r-process elements with nuclear mass numbers A >140. The crucial role of fission recycling is responsible for the robustness of this site against many…
The recently improved information on the stellar (n,gamma) cross sections of neutron-magic nuclei at N = 82, and in particular of 142Nd, turned out to represent a sensitive test for models of s-process nucleosynthesis. While these data were…
About half of the elements beyond iron are synthesized in stars by rapid-neutron capture process (r-process). The stellar environment provides very high neutron flux in a short time ($\sim$ seconds) which is conducive for the creation of…
We use results from long-time core-collapse supernovae simulations to investigate the impact of the late time evolution of the ejecta and of the nuclear physics input on the calculated r-process abundances. Based on the latest…
We consider $r$-process nucleosynthesis in outflows from black hole accretion discs formed in double neutron star and neutron star -- black hole mergers. These outflows, powered by angular momentum transport processes and nuclear…
We explore the effects of nuclear masses on the temperature and neutron density conditions required for r-process nucleosynthesis using four nuclear mass models augmented by the latest atomic mass evaluation. For each model we derive the…
We study the impact of fission on the production and destruction of translead nuclei during the r-process nucleosynthesis occurring in neutron-star mergers. Abundance patterns and rates of nuclear energy production are obtained for…