Related papers: Systematic Opacity Calculations for Kilonovae
Revealing the temporal evolution of individual heavy elements synthesized in the merger ejecta from binary neutron star mergers not only improves our understanding of the origin of heavy elements beyond iron but also clarifies the energy…
Kilonovae represent key sites of r-process nucleosynthesis, making opacity estimation and spectral analysis crucial for constraining their composition. Since light r-process elements shape the early ($\sim$0.5-1.5$\mathrm{d}$) ejecta…
We revisit a neutrino-driven r-process mechanism in the He shell of a core-collapse supernova, finding that it could succeed in early stars of metallicity < solar/1000, at relatively low temperatures and neutron densities, producing A ~ 130…
Binary neutron star mergers are promising sources of gravitational waves for ground-based detectors such as Advanced LIGO. Neutron-rich material ejected by these mergers may also be the main source of r-process elements in the Universe,…
Binary neutron star mergers are the first confirmed site of element nucleosynthesis by the rapid neutron-capture process (r-process). The kilonova AT2017gfo is the only electromagnetic counterpart of a neutron star merger spectroscopically…
Gravitational wave observations need accompanying electromagnetic signals to accurately determine the sky positions of the sources. The ejecta of neutron star mergers are expected to produce such electromagnetic transients, called…
A simple analytic description is provided of the rate of energy deposition by $\beta$-decay electrons in the homologously expanding radioactive plasma ejected in neutron star mergers, valid for a wide range of ejecta parameters -- initial…
We present a comprehensive nucleosynthesis study of the neutrino-driven wind in the aftermath of a binary neutron star merger. Our focus is the initial remnant phase when a massive central neutron star is present. Using tracers from a…
Half of all the elements in the universe heavier than iron were created by rapid neutron capture. The theory for this astrophysical `$r$-process' was worked out six decades ago and requires an enormous neutron flux to make the bulk of these…
We perform radiation-hydrodynamics simulations of binary neutron star mergers in numerical relativity on the Japanese "K" supercomputer, taking into account neutrino cooling and heating by an updated leakage-plus-transfer scheme for the…
In binary neutron star mergers, lanthanide-rich dynamical ejecta and lanthanide-poor post-merger ejecta have been often linked to the red and blue kilonova emission, respectively. However, analytic light curve modeling of kilonova often…
Neutron emission probabilities and half-lives of 37 beta-delayed neutron emitters from 75Ni to 92Br were measured at the RIKEN Nishina Center in Japan, including 11 one-neutron and 13 two-neutron emission probabilities and 6 half-lives…
The main astronomical source of r-process elements has not yet been identified. One plausible site is neutron star mergers (NSMs), but from perspective of the Galactic chemical evolution, it has been pointed out that NSMs cannot reproduce…
We investigate the significance of isomers on a kilonova associated with neutron star mergers (NSMs) for the first time. We calculate the evolution of abundances and energy generation rates ($\dot{\epsilon}_{\rm nuc}$) of ejecta from NSMs,…
A kilonova is a short-lived explosive event in the universe, resulting from the merger of two compact objects. Despite its importance as a primary source of heavy elements through r-process nucleosynthesis, its nature is not well…
During the merger of a black hole and a neutron star, baryonic mass can become unbound from the system. Because the ejected material is extremely neutron-rich, the r-process rapidly synthesizes heavy nuclides as the material expands and…
Theoretical predictions of element yields from the rapid neutron capture (r-) process are subject to large uncertainties due to incomplete knowledge of nuclear properties and approximative hydrodynamical modeling of matter ejection. A major…
The coalescence of binary neutron stars can yield the expulsion of a fast-moving, quasi-isotropic material, which may induce thermal radiation and give rise to kilonova emission. Moreover, the interaction between the ejected material and…
We use 3D hydrodynamic simulations of the long-term evolution of neutron star merger ejecta to predict the light curves of electromagnetic transients that are powered by the decay of freshly produced r-process nuclei. For the dynamic ejecta…
Rapid neutron capture process (r-process) elements have been detected in a large fraction of metal-poor halo stars, with abundances relative to iron (Fe) that vary by over two orders of magnitude. This scatter is reduced to less than a…