The 14C(n,g) cross section between 10 keV and 1 MeV

TL;DR

This paper presents new direct measurements of the 14C(n,g) cross section between 20 and 800 keV to resolve discrepancies and improve understanding of its role in nucleosynthesis and validation of indirect methods.

Contribution

It provides the first new direct measurements of the 14C(n,g) cross section in this energy range, addressing previous experimental and theoretical inconsistencies.

Findings

New cross section data between 20 and 800 keV

Resolution of previous experimental discrepancies

Implications for nucleosynthesis models

Abstract

The neutron capture cross section of 14C is of relevance for several nucleosynthesis scenarios such as inhomogeneous Big Bang models, neutron induced CNO cycles, and neutrino driven wind models for the r process. The 14C(n,g) reaction is also important for the validation of the Coulomb dissociation method, where the (n,g) cross section can be indirectly obtained via the time-reversed process. So far, the example of 14C is the only case with neutrons where both, direct measurement and indirect Coulomb dissociation, have been applied. Unfortunately, the interpretation is obscured by discrepancies between several experiments and theory. Therefore, we report on new direct measurements of the 14C(n,g) reaction with neutron energies ranging from 20 to 800 keV.