Where, oh where has the r-process gone?

TL;DR

This review explores potential astrophysical sources of r-process nuclei, highlighting the challenges of current models, and proposes a two-component model explaining element abundances in metal-poor stars.

Contribution

The paper introduces a two-component model linking heavy r-process element production to specific supernovae and accretion-induced collapse events, improving abundance predictions.

Findings

Heavy r-nuclei are unlikely produced in neutrino-driven winds.

A two-component model accurately predicts element abundances in metal-poor stars.

Supernovae from O-Ne-Mg core collapse or white dwarf accretion are key sources.

Abstract

We present a review of the possible sources for r-process nuclei. It is known that there is as yet no self-consistent mechanism to provide abundant neutrons for a robust r-process in the neutrino-driven winds from nascent neutron stars. We consider that the heavy r-nuclei with mass numbers A>130 (Ba and above) cannot be produced in the neutrino-driven winds. Nonetheless, the r-process and the neutrino-driven winds may be directly or indirectly related by some unknown additional mechanism, which, for example, could provide ejecta with very short dynamic timescales of <0.004 s. This undetermined mechanism must supply a neutron source within the same general stellar sites that undergo core collapse to produce the neutron star. Observational data on low-metallicity stars in the Galactic halo show that sites producing the heavy r-nuclei do not produce Fe or any other elements between N and Ge. Insofar as a forming neutron star is key to producing the heavy r-nuclei, then the only possible sources are supernovae resulting from collapse of O-Ne-Mg cores or accretion-induced collapse of white dwarfs, neither of which produce the elements of the Fe group or those of intermediate mass (above C and N). Using a template star with high enrichments of heavy r-nuclei and another with low enrichments we develop a two-component model based on the abundances of Eu (from sources for heavy r-nuclei) and Fe (from Fe core-collapse supernovae). This model gives very good quantitative predictions for the abundances of all the other elements in those metal-poor stars with [Fe/H]<-1.5 for which the Eu and Fe abundances are known. (Abridged)