Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1965

Publication Title

The Astrophysical Journal

Publisher

The American Astronomical Society

Abstract

Nucleosynthesis of elements heavier than the iron group by neutron capture on both slow and fast time scales is evaluated. The s-process calculations of Clayton, Fowler, Hull, and Zimmerman (1961) have been revised to include more recent experimental results on abundances and neutron capture cross- sections. The solar-system s-process abundances indicate a history of neutron exposure distributions characterized by decreasing probability of high integrated flux; an exponential exposure distribution is extracted. Estimates are made of the s-process contribution to each isotopic abundance; a table gives the amounts of elements produced by each process in the solar-system material. The r-process calculations are carried out using a semi-empirical atomic-mass law to determine neutron-binding energies and betadecay probabilities. The solar-system r-process material has probably been synthesized in two distinct types of environments, e.g., one of about 4 sec duration with temperature 2.4 X 10 K and neutron density 5 X tO , and the other of the same or longer duration with temperature 1.0 X 10 K and neutron density 3 X 1O both of these environments could be found in an object with mass 10 Mo.

Share

COinS