Related papers: Neutron Captures in the r-Process
There has been a persistent conundrum in attempts to model the nucleosynthesis of heavy elements by rapid neutron capture (the $r$-process). Although the location of the abundance peaks near nuclear mass numbers 130 and 195 identify an…
The hydrogen-rich accreted envelopes of neutron stars in binary systems are the site for the rapid proton capture nucleosynthethic process (rp-process), which involves nuclei close to the proton dripline. An overview of the relevant…
We review recent work examining the influence of fission in rapid neutron capture ($r$-process) nucleosynthesis which can take place in astrophysical environments. We briefly discuss the impact of uncertain fission barriers and fission…
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…
In a brief review of abundances neutron-capture elements (Z > ~30) in metal-poor halo stars, attention is called to their star-to-star scatter, the dominance of r-process synthesis at lowest metallicities, the puzzle of the lighter members…
Nuclear masses are one of the key ingredients of nuclear physics that go into astrophysical simulations of the $r$ process. Nuclear masses effect $r$-process abundances by entering into calculations of Q-values, neutron capture rates,…
We discuss various neutrino-nucleus interactions in connection with the supernova r-process nucleosynthesis, which possibly occurs in the neutrino-driven wind of a young neutron star. These interactions include absorptions of electron…
The rapid neutron-capture process (r-process) is responsible for the creation of roughly half of the elements heavier than iron, including precious metals like silver, gold, and platinum, as well as radioactive elements such as thorium and…
Unknown neutron-capture reaction rates remain a significant source of uncertainty in state-of-the-art $r$-process nucleosynthesis reaction network calculations. As the $r$-process involves highly neutron-rich nuclei for which direct…
The prediction of cross sections for nuclei far off stability is crucial in the field of nuclear astrophysics. We calculate direct neutron capture on the even-even isotopes $^{124-145}$Sn and $^{208-238}$Pb with energy levels, masses, and…
An r-process scenario with fission but no fission cycling is considered to account for the observed abundance patterns of neutron-capture elements in ultra-metal-poor stars. It is proposed that neutrino reactions play a crucial role in…
This talk reviews three inputs important to neutrino-induced nucleosynthesis in a supernova: 1) "standard" properties of the supernova neutrino flux, 2) effects of phenomena like neutrino oscillations on that flux, and 3) nuclear structure…
Electron captures on nuclei play an essential role for the dynamics of several astrophysical objects. The capture rate can be derived in perturbation theory where allowed nuclear transitions (Gamow-Teller transitions) dominate, except at…
A clear definition of the contribution from the slow neutron-capture process (s process) to the solar abundances between Fe and the Sr-Zr region is a crucial challenge for nuclear astrophysics. Robust s-process predictions are necessary to…
We propose a $(p,xn)$ mechanism with dynamic production as a new set of nuclear reactions that could produce high density neutrons and explain the r- and rp-elements. We calculate the rate of thorium and uranium produced by our proposed…
Most heavy elements beyond the iron peak are synthesized via neutron capture processes. The nature of the astrophysical sites of neutron capture processes is still very unclear. In this work we explore the observational constraints of the…
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…
The astrophysical origin of the r-process nuclei is still unknown. Even the most promising scenario, the neutrino-driven winds from a nascent neutron star, encounters severe difficulties in obtaining requisite entropy and short dynamic…
We study here the formation of heavy r-process nuclei in the high-entropy environment of rapidly expanding neutrino-driven winds from compact objects. In particular, we explore the sensitivity of the element creation in the A>130 region to…