Constraining the destruction rate of $^{40}$K in stellar nucleosynthesis through the study of the $^{40}$Ar(p,n)$^{40}$K reaction
P. Gastis, G. Perdikakis, J. Dissanayake, P. Tsintari, I. Sultana, C. R. Brune, T. N. Massey, Z. Meisel, A. V. Voinov, K. Brandenburg, T. Danley, R. Giri, Y. Jo… 展开作者
P. Gastis, G. Perdikakis, J. Dissanayake, P. Tsintari, I. Sultana, C. R. Brune, T. N. Massey, Z. Meisel, A. V. Voinov, K. Brandenburg, T. Danley, R. Giri, Y. Jones-Alberty, S. Paneru, D. Soltesz, S. Subedi
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20 pages, 16 figures, submitted to PRC (revised manuscript after referee's review)
40K 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 40K 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 40K during stellar evolution can play a critical role. In this study, we constrain for the first time the astrophysical reaction rate of 40K(n,p)40Ar, which is responsible for the destruction of 40K during stellar nucleosynthesis. We performed differential cross-section measurements on the 40Ar(p,n)40K reaction, for six energies in the center-of-mass between 3.2 and 4.0 MeV and various angles between 0-deg and 135-deg. 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. 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-deg and consistent with the theoretical predictions of the statistical model. Based on the experimental data, local transmission coefficients were extracted and were used to calculate the astrophysical reaction rates of 40Ar(p,n)40K and 40K(n,p)40Ar reactions. Our results support that the destruction rate of 40K in massive stars via the 40K(n,p)40Ar reaction is larger compared to previous estimates. This result directly affects the predicted stellar yields of 40K 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.
Constraining r-process nucleosynthesis via enhanced accuracy neutron-capture experiments
Instituto de Física Corpuscular, CSIC - Universitat de València（粒子物理研究所，西班牙科学理事会-瓦伦西亚大学）；School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh（爱丁堡大学物理与天文学学院）；Agenzia nazionale per le nuove tecnologie, l’energia e lo sviluppo economico sostenibile (ENEA)（国家新技术、能源和可持续经济发展局）；Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Bologna（意大利国家核物理研究所博洛尼分所）；European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)（欧洲核子研究组织）
Investigation of $^{31}$P levels near the proton threshold by Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence and the impact on the $^{30}$Si(p,$γ$)$^{31}$P thermonuclear rate
