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NASA NTRS1994

Gamma-ray constraints on supernova nucleosynthesis

Gamma-ray spectroscopy holds great promise for probing nucleosynthesis in individual supernova explosions via short-lived radioactivity, and for measuring current global Galactic supernova nucleosynthesis with longer-lived radioactivity. It was somewhat surprising that the former case was realized first for a Type II supernova, when both Co-56 and Co-57 were detected in SN 1987A. These provide unprecedented constraints on models of Type II explosions and nucleosynthesis. Live Al-26 in the Galaxy might come from Type II supernovae, and if it is eventually shown to be so, can constrain massive star evolution, supernova nucleosynthesis, and the Galactic Type II supernova rate. Type Ia supernovae, thought to be thermonuclear explosions, have not yet been detected in gamma-rays. This is somewhat surprising given current models and recent Co-56 detection attempts. Ultimately, gamma-ray measurements can confirm their thermonuclear nature, probe the nuclear burning conditions, and help evaluate their contributions to Galactic nucleosynthesis. Type Ib/c supernovae are poorly understood. Whether they are core collapse or thermonuclear events might be ultimately settled by gamma-ray observations. Depending on details of the nuclear processing, any of these supernova types might contribute to a detectable diffuse glow of Fe-60 gamma-ray lines. Previous attempts at detection have come very close to expected emission levels. Remnants of any type of age less that a few centuries might be detectable as individual spots of Ti-44 gamma-ray line emission. It is in fact quite surprising that previous surveys have not discovered such spots, and the constraints on the combination of nucleosynthesis yields and supernova rates are very interesting. All of these interesting limits and possibilities mean that the next mission, International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL), if it has sufficient sensitivity, is very likely to lead to the realization of much of the great potential of gamma-ray spectroscopy for understanding supernovae.

Leising, Mark D.↗

DOE OSTI2021

Following nuclei through nucleosynthesis: A novel tracing technique

Astrophysical nucleosynthesis is a family of diverse processes by which atomic nuclei undergo nuclear reactions and decay to form new nuclei. The complex nature of nucleosynthesis, which can involve as many as tens of thousands of interactions between thousands of nuclei, makes it difficult to study any one of these interactions in isolation using standard approaches. In this work, we present a new technique, nucleosynthesis tracing, that we use to quantify the relative fraction of nuclear abundances that pass through individual nuclear reaction, decay, and fission processes at any point during nucleosynthesis. Here, we apply this technique to study fission and β – decay as they occur in the rapid neutron capture (r) process of nucleosynthesis.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Spectacular Nucleosynthesis from Early Massive Stars

Abstract Stars that formed with an initial mass of over 50 M ⊙ are very rare today, but they are thought to be more common in the early Universe. The fates of those early, metal-poor, massive stars are highly uncertain. Most are expected to directly collapse to black holes, while some may explode as a result of rotationally powered engines or the pair-creation instability. We present the chemical abundances of J0931+0038, a nearby low-mass star identified in early follow-up of the SDSS-V Milky Way Mapper, which preserves the signature of unusual nucleosynthesis from a massive star in the early Universe. J0931+0038 has a relatively high metallicity ([Fe/H] = −1.76 ± 0.13) but an extreme odd–even abundance pattern, with some of the lowest known abundance ratios of [N/Fe], [Na/Fe], [K/Fe], [Sc/Fe], and [Ba/Fe]. The implication is that a majority of its metals originated in a single extremely metal-poor nucleosynthetic source. An extensive search through nucleosynthesis predictions finds a clear preference for progenitors with initial mass >50 M ⊙ , making J0931+0038 one of the first observational constraints on nucleosynthesis in this mass range. However, the full abundance pattern is not matched by any models in the literature. J0931+0038 thus presents a challenge for the next generation of nucleosynthesis models and motivates the study of high-mass progenitor stars impacted by convection, rotation, jets, and/or binary companions. Though rare, more examples of unusual early nucleosynthesis in metal-poor stars should be found in upcoming large spectroscopic surveys.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Impact of in situ nuclear networks and atomic opacities on neutron star merger ejecta dynamics, nucleosynthesis, and kilonovae

Context. Binary neutron star merger (BNSM) ejecta are key sites of rapid neutron capture (r-process) nucleosynthesis and they produce kilonovae powered by the radioactive decay of freshly synthesized nuclei. Modeling their evolution requires multi-physics simulations involving hydrodynamics, nuclear reactions, and radiative processes. The impact of nuclear burning and atomic opacity is poorly understood and often treated with simplified prescriptions. Aims. We systematically investigate different treatments of nuclear heating, particle thermalization, and atomic opacities in radiation-hydrodynamics simulations of BNSM ejecta and kilonova light curves. Methods. Ejecta profiles from long-term numerical-relativity simulations of asymmetric neutron star binaries with a massive neutron star remnant were evolved to ∼30 days using a 2D ray-by-ray approach. We compared simplified heating-rate and thermalization prescriptions with in situ Nuclear reaction Network (NN) calculations that track nuclear energy deposition and include a composition-dependent thermalization scheme. We also contrasted various gray opacity models with a frequency-dependent treatment based on atomic calculations. Results. Coupling NN and hydrodynamics significantly affects nucleosynthesis and kilonova emission. Assuming homologous expansion alters abundance evolution and produces a narrower, less populated second r-process peak and a third peak shifted to higher mass numbers. The back-reaction of nuclear heating affects the temperature evolution enough to delay and redden the early (t∼ hours) kilonova peaks. A constant thermalization efficiency underestimates and reddens the early emission while overestimating the late-time luminosity compared to the composition-dependent treatment. Analytical opacity prescriptions yield a more extended, colder photosphere, resulting in dimmer, redder kilonovae at early times (t≲ hour), while the delayed recession of the photosphere prolongs the red emission at t ≳ 5 days. Conclusions. Coupling hydrodynamics to an in situ NN is crucial for reliable nucleosynthesis and kilonova predictions. Resolving the first several hundred milliseconds of the hydrodynamics is essential for robust nucleosynthesis calculations. Composition-dependent thermalization and frequency-dependent, atomic-physics-based opacities are needed to accurately capture the temperature evolution of the ejecta and the brightness and color evolution of the kilonova. Calibrated analytic nuclear-power fits with simplified thermalization and opacity prescriptions can still reproduce the density and temperature evolution of the ejecta.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Total absorption spectroscopy of two isomers in 70 Cu influencing nucleosynthesis signatures

Isomers have long been known to be important for astrophysical nucleosynthesis processes, yet they are often neglected in network calculations due to computational limitations or lack of data. "Astromers" are astrophysically metastable nuclear states that can greatly impact nucleosynthesis pathways. In this work we show that astromers further impact the time-dependent electromagnetic signal during heavy element nucleosynthesis. In an experiment performed at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, three 𝛽-decaying states of 70 Cu (6 − ground state, and two isomeric states: 3 − and 1 + ) were produced. 𝛽-feeding values were extracted from experimental spectra and compared to shell-model and QRPA+PVC calculations. Here, average 𝛾-ray energies from the 𝛽-decay events were incorporated into simulations of heavy element nucleosynthesis and were found to exhibit different energy release profiles over time, which may impact, in aggregate, time-dependent observable signals.

59 ≤ A ≤ 89↗

DOE OSTI2024

Photon strength functions and nuclear level densities: invaluable input for nucleosynthesis

The pivotal role of nuclear physics in nucleosynthesis processes is being investigated, in particular the intricate influence of photon strength functions (PSFs) and nuclear level densities (NLDs) on shaping the outcomes of the i-, r- and p-processes. Exploring diverse NLD and PSF model combinations uncovers large uncertainties for (p, γ ), (n, γ ) and ( α , γ ) rates across many regions of the nuclear chart. These lead to potentially significant abundance variations of the nucleosynthesis processes and highlight the importance of accurate experimental nuclear data. Theoretical insights and advanced experimental techniques lay the ground work for profound understanding that can be gained of nucleosynthesis mechanisms and the origin of the elements. Recent results further underscore the effect of PSF and NLD data and its contribution to understanding abundance distributions and refining knowledge of the intricate nucleosynthesis processes. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The liminal position of Nuclear Physics: from hadrons to neutron stars’.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1994

Production of Lithium, Beryllium, and Boron from Baryon inhomogeneous primordial nucleosynthesis

We investigate the possibility that inhomogeneous nucleosynthesis may eventually be used to explain the abundances of Li-6, Be-9, and B in Population II stars. The present work differs from previous studies in that we have used a more extensive reaction network. It is demonstrated that in the simplest scenario the abundances of the light elements with A less than or = 7 constrain the separation of inhomogeneities to sufficently small scales that the model is indistinguishable from homogeneous nucleosynthesis and that the abundnace of Li-6, Be-9, and B are then below observations by several orders of magnitude. This conclusion does not depend on the Li-7 constraint. We also examine alternative scenarios which involve a post-nucleosynthesis reprocessing of the light elements to reproduce the observed abundances of Li and B, while allowing for a somewhat higher baryon density (still well below the cosmological critical density). Future B/H measurements may be able to exclude even this exotic scenario and further restrict primirdial nucleosynthesis to approach the homogeneous model conclusions.

Thomas, David↗

DOE OSTI2023

The γ -process nucleosynthesis in core-collapse supernovae

The γ-process nucleosynthesis in core-collapse supernovae is generally accepted as a feasible process for the synthesis of neutron-deficient isotopes beyond iron. However, crucial discrepancies between theory and observations still exist: the average yields of γ-process nucleosynthesis from massive stars are still insufficient to reproduce the solar distribution in galactic chemical evolution calculations, and the yields of the Mo and Ru isotopes are a factor of ten lower than the yields of the other γ-process nuclei. We investigate the γ-process in five sets of core-collapse supernova models published in the literature with initial masses of 15, 20, and 25 M ⊙ at solar metallicity. We compared the γ-process overproduction factors from the different models. To highlight the possible effect of nuclear physics input, we also considered 23 ratios of two isotopes close to each other in mass relative to their solar values. Further, we investigated the contribution of C–O shell mergers in the supernova progenitors as an additional site of the γ-process. Our analysis shows that a large scatter among the different models exists for both the γ-process integrated yields and the isotopic ratios. We find only ten ratios that agree with their solar values, all the others differ by at least a factor of three from the solar values in all the considered sets of models. The γ-process within C–O shell mergers mostly influences the isotopic ratios that involve intermediate and heavy proton-rich isotopes with A > 100. We conclude that there are large discrepancies both among the different data sets and between the model predictions and the solar abundance distribution. More calculations are needed; particularly updating the nuclear network, because the majority of the models considered in this work do not use the latest reaction rates for the γ-process nucleosynthesis. Moreover, the role of C–O shell mergers requires further investigation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Systematic exploration of heavy element nucleosynthesis in protomagnetar outflows

ABSTRACT We study the nucleosynthesis products in neutrino-driven winds from rapidly rotating, highly magnetized and misaligned protomagnetars using the nuclear reaction network SkyNet. We adopt a semi-analytic parametrized model for the protomagnetar and systematically study the capabilities of its neutrino-driven wind for synthesizing nuclei and eventually producing ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). We find that for neutron-rich outflows (Ye < 0.5), synthesis of heavy elements ($\overline{A}\sim 20-65$) is possible during the first $\sim 10\, {\rm s}$ of the outflow, but these nuclei are subjected to composition-altering photodisintegration during the epoch of particle acceleration at the dissipation radii. However, after the first $\sim 10\, {\rm s}$ of the outflow, nucleosynthesis reaches lighter elements ($\overline{A}\sim 10-50$) that are not subjected to subsequent photodisintegration. For proton-rich (Ye ≥ 0.5) outflows, synthesis is more limited ($\overline{A}\sim 4-15$). These suggest that while protomagnetars typically do not synthesize nuclei heavier than second r-process peak elements, they are intriguing sources of intermediate/heavy mass UHECRs. For all configurations, the most rapidly rotating protomagnetars are more conducive for nucleosynthesis with a weaker dependence on the magnetic field strength.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Fast, differentiable, and extensible big bang nucleosynthesis package

Here, we introduce light isotope nucleosynthesis with JAX (LINX), a new differentiable public big bang nucleosynthesis code designed for fast parameter estimation. By leveraging JAX, LINX achieves both speed and differentiability, enabling the use of Bayesian inference, including gradient-based methods. We discuss the formalism used in LINX for rapid primordial elemental abundance predictions and give examples of how LINX can be used. When combined with differentiable cosmic microwave background power spectrum emulators, LINX can be used for joint cosmic microwave background and big bang nucleosynthesis analyses without requiring extensive computational resources, including on personal hardware.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Constraining the destruction rate of K 40 in stellar nucleosynthesis through the study of the Ar 40 ( p , n ) K 40 reaction

Background: We present that K 40 plays a significant role in the radiogenic heating of Earth-like exoplanets, which can affect the development of a habitable environment on their surfaces. The initial amount of K 40 in the interior of these planets depends on the composition of the interstellar clouds from which they formed. Within this context, nuclear reactions that regulate the production of K 40 during stellar evolution can play a critical role. Purpose: In this study, we constrain for the first time the astrophysical reaction rate of K 40 ( n , p ) Ar 40 , which is responsible for the destruction of K 40 during stellar nucleosynthesis. We provide to the nuclear physics community high-resolution data on the cross section and angular distribution of the Ar 40 ( p , n ) K 40 reaction. These are important to various applications involving Ar 40 . The associated reaction rate of the Ar 40 ( p , n ) K 40 process addresses a reaction rate gap in the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics REACLIB database in the region of intermediate-mass isotopes. Methods: We performed differential cross-section measurements on the Ar 40 ( p , n ) K 40 reaction, for six energies in the center-of-mass system between 3.2 and 4.0 MeV and various angles between 0 ° and 135 ° . The experiment took place at the Edwards Accelerator Laboratory at Ohio University using the beam swinger target location and a standard neutron time-of-flight technique. We extracted total and partial cross sections by integrating the double differential cross sections we measured. Results: The total and partial cross sections varied with energy due to the contribution from isobaric analog states and Ericson type fluctuations. The energy-averaged neutron angular distributions were symmetrical relative to 90 ° . Based on the experimental data, local transmission coefficients were extracted and were used to calculate the astrophysical reaction rates of Ar 40 ( p , n ) K 40 and K 40 ( n , p ) Ar 40 reactions. The new rates were found to vary significantly from the theoretical rates in the REACLIB library. We implemented the new rates in network calculations to study nucleosynthesis via the slow neutron capture process, and we found that the produced abundance of K 40 is reduced by up to 10% compared to calculations with the library rates. At the same time, the above result removes a significant portion of the previous theoretical uncertainty on the K 40 yields from stellar evolution calculations. Conclusions: Our results support a destruction rate of K 40 in massive stars via the K 40 ( n , p ) Ar 40 reaction that is larger compared to previous estimates. The rate of K 40 destruction via the K 40 ( n , p ) Ar 40 reaction now has a dramatically reduced uncertainty based on our measurement. Lastly, this result directly affects the predicted stellar yields of K 40 from nucleosynthesis, which is a critical input parameter for the galactic chemical evolution models that are currently employed for the study of significant properties of exoplanets.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

The Dependence of Iron-rich Metal-poor Star Occurrence on Galactic Environment Supports an Origin in Thermonuclear Supernova Nucleosynthesis

It has been suggested that a class of chemically peculiar metal-poor stars called iron-rich metal-poor (IRMP) stars formed from molecular cores with metal contents dominated by thermonuclear supernova nucleosynthesis. If this interpretation is accurate, then IRMP stars should be more common in environments where thermonuclear supernovae were important contributors to chemical evolution. Conversely, IRMP stars should be less common in environments where thermonuclear supernovae were not important contributors to chemical evolution. At constant [Fe/H] ≲ -1, the Milky Way's satellite classical dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies and the Magellanic Clouds have lower [α/Fe] than the Milky Way field and globular cluster populations. This difference is thought to demonstrate the importance of thermonuclear supernova nucleosynthesis for the chemical evolution of the Milky Way's satellite classical dSph galaxies and the Magellanic Clouds. We use data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment and Gaia to infer the occurrence of IRMP stars in the Milky Way's satellite classical dSph galaxies η dSph and the Magellanic Clouds η Mag , as well as in the Milky Way field η MWF and globular cluster populations η MWGC . In order of decreasing occurrence, we find η dSph = $0.07$$^{+0.02}_{-0.02}$, η Mag = $0.037$$^{+0.007}_{-0.006}$, η MWF = $0.0013$$^{+0.0006}_{-0.0005}$, and a 1σ upper limit η MWGC < 0.00057. These occurrences support the inference that IRMP stars formed in environments dominated by thermonuclear supernova nucleosynthesis and that the time lag between the formation of the first and second stellar generations in globular clusters was longer than the thermonuclear supernova delay time.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Impact of the Latest 22 Ne+ α Reaction Rates on Nucleosynthesis in Massive Stars and Galactic Chemical Evolution

In massive stars (initial mass of ≳9 M ⊙ ), the weak s- (slow neutron capture) process produces elements between Fe and Zr, enriching the Galaxy with these elements through core-collapse supernova explosions. The weak s-process nucleosynthesis is driven by neutrons produced in the 22 Ne(α, n) 25 Mg reaction during convective He core and C shell burning. The yields of heavy elements thus depend on the 22 Ne(α, n) 25 Mg and the competitive 22 Ne(α, γ) 26 Mg reaction rates, which are dominated by several narrow-resonance reactions. While the accuracy of these rates has been under debate for decades, recent experimental efforts, including ours, drastically reduced these uncertainties. In this work, we use a set of 280 massive star nucleosynthesis models calculated using different 22 Ne(α, n) 25 Mg and 22 Ne(α, γ) 26 Mg rates and a galactic chemical evolution (GCE) study to probe their impact on the weak s-process elemental abundances in the Galaxy. The GCE was computed with the OMEGA+ code, using the new sets of stellar yields with different 22 Ne+α rates. From GCE, we find that these rates are causing up to 0.45 dex of variations in the [Cu/Fe], [Ga/Fe], and [Ge/Fe] ratios predicted at solar metallicity. The greatest impact on the stellar nucleosynthesis and GCE results derives from uncertainties in the (α, n) strength (ωγ (α,n) ) of the E x = 11.32 MeV resonance. We show that variations observed in the GCE calculations for weak s-process elements become negligibly smaller than dispersions found in observations once the ωγ (α,n) is accurately determined within the uncertainty of 10%–20% (typically reported experimental errors for the resonance) in future nuclear physics experiments.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1990

A new limit on the time between the nucleosynthesis and the acceleration of cosmic rays in supernova remnants using the Co/Ni ratio

Using new cross section measurements of Ni into Co, data on the Co/Ni ratio in cosmic rays from the HEAO C spacecraft have been reinterpreted in terms of the time between nucleosynthesis and the acceleration of cosmic rays, delta t. The observed Co/Ni ratio is now consistent with interstellar fragmentation only, leading to a small or zero source abundance. In terms of the decay of e-process nucleosynthesis nuclides into Co after a supernova explosion, this permits an estimate of delta t = 4-30,000 yr for the time between nucleosynthesis and the acceleration of cosmic rays if supernovae are the direct progenitors of cosmic rays. These age limits are used in conjunction with models of the expansion of supernova remnants (SNRs), to estimate that cosmic rays are accelerated when the radius of these remnants is between 0.1 and 25 pc.

Webber, W. R.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Explosive nucleosynthesis in SN 1987A. II - Composition, radioactivities, and the neutron star mass

The 20 solar mass model of Nomoto and Hashimoto (1988) is utilized with a 6 solar mass. He core is used to perform explosive nucleosynthesis calculations. The employed explosion energy of 10 to the 51st ergs lies within the uncertainty range inferred from the bolometric light curve. The nucleosynthesis processes and their burning products are discussed in detail. The results are compared with abundances from IR observations of SN 1987A and the average nucleosynthesis expected for Type II supernovae in Galactic chemical evolution. The abundances of long-lived radioactive nuclei and their importance for the late light curve and gamma-ray observations are predicted. The position of the mass cut between the neutron star and the ejecta is deduced from the total amount of ejected Ni-56. This requires a neutron star with a baryonic mass of 1.6 + or - 0.045 solar mass, which corresponds to a gravitational mass of 1.43 + or - 0.05 solar mass after subtracting the binding energy of a nonrotating neutron star.

Thielemann, Friedrich-Karl↗

NASA NTRS1993

Population II Li-6 as a probe of nucleosynthesis and stellar structure and evolution

We discuss the importance of Population II Li-6 as a diagnostic for models of primordial nucleosynthesis, cosmic-ray nucleosyntheses in the early Galaxy, and the structure and evolution of metal-poor solar-type stars. The observation of Li-6 in the subdwarf HD 84937 is shown to be consistent with the existing Population II LiBeB data within the context of a simple three-component model: (1) standard big bang nucleosynthesis, (2) Population II cosmic-ray nucleosynthesis, (3) standard (nonrotating) stellar LiBeB depletion. If this interpretation is correct, we predict a potentially detectable boron abundance for this star: about 2 x 10 exp -12. Subsequent Population II LiBeB observations, and in particular further observations of Population II Li-6, are shown to be crucial to our understanding of the primordial and early galactic creation and destruction mechanisms for light elements.

Steigman, Gary↗

NASA NTRS1997

Simplifying silicon burning: Application of quasi-equilibrium to (alpha) network nucleosynthesis

While the need for accurate calculation of nucleosynthesis and the resulting rate of thermonuclear energy release within hydrodynamic models of stars and supernovae is clear, the computational expense of these nucleosynthesis calculations often force a compromise in accuracy to reduce the computational cost. To redress this trade-off of accuracy for speed, the authors present an improved nuclear network which takes advantage of quasi- equilibrium in order to reduce the number of independent nuclei, and hence the computational cost of nucleosynthesis, without significant reduction in accuracy. In this paper they will discuss the first application of this method, the further reduction in size of the minimal alpha network. The resultant QSE- reduced alpha network is twice as fast as the conventional alpha network it replaces and requires the tracking of half as many abundance variables, while accurately estimating the rate of energy generation. Such reduction in cost is particularly necessary for future generation of multi-dimensional models for supernovae.

Hix, W. R.↗

DOE OSTI2020

Thermonuclear Reaction Rates and Primordial Nucleosynthesis

Assuming the best numerical value for the cosmic baryonic density and the existence of three neutrino flavors, standard Big Bang nucleosynthesis is a parameter-free model. It is important to assess if the observed primordial abundances can be reproduced by simulations. Numerous studies have shown that the simulations overpredict the primordial 7 Li abundance by a factor of ≈3 compared to the observations. The discrepancy may be caused by unknown systematics in 7 Li observations, poorly understood depletion of lithium in stars, errors in thermonuclear rates that take part in the lithium and beryllium synthesis, or physics beyond the standard model. Here, we focus on the likelihood of a nuclear physics solution. The status of the key nuclear reaction rates is summarized. Big Bang nucleosynthesis simulations are performed with the most recent reaction rates, and the uncertainties of the predicted abundances are established using a Monte Carlo technique. Correlations between abundances and reaction rates are investigated based on the metric of mutual information. The rates of four reactions impact the primordial 7 Li abundance: 3 He(α,γ) 7 Be, d(p,γ) 3 He, 7 Be(d,p)2α, and 7 Be(n,p) 7 Li. We employ a genetic algorithm to search for simultaneous rate changes in these four reactions that may account for all observed primordial abundances. Furthermore, when the search is performed for reaction rate ranges that are much wider than recently reported uncertainties, no acceptable solutions are found. Based on the currently available evidence, we conclude that it is highly unlikely for the cosmological lithium problem to have a nuclear physics solution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗