Relative production rates of $^{6}$He, $^{9}$Be, $^{12}$C in astrophysical environments

TL;DR

This paper models the relative production rates of $^{6}$He, $^{9}$Be, and $^{12}$C in astrophysical environments with varying densities and temperatures, revealing how their abundances depend on environmental conditions.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of how neutron and alpha particle densities influence the synthesis of light nuclei in astrophysical settings.

Findings

$^{9}$Be production peaks when $Y_{\alpha}$ is between 0.2 and 0.9.

$^{12}$C dominates when $Y_{\alpha}$ exceeds 0.9.

$^{6}$He is mainly produced at temperatures above 2 GK when $Y_{\alpha}<0.2$.

Abstract

We assume an environment of neutrons and $\alpha$-particles of given density and temperature where nuclear syntheses into $^{6}$He, $^{9}$Be and $^{12}$C are possible. We investigate the resulting relative abundance as a function of density and temperature. When the relative abundance of $\alpha$-particles $Y_{\alpha}$ is between 0.2 and 0.9, or larger than 0.9, the largest production is $^{9}$Be or $^{12}$C, respectively. When $Y_{\alpha}<0.2$ $^{6}$He is mostly frequently produced for temperatures above about 2 GK whereas the $^{9}$Be production dominates at smaller temperatures.