Barrier penetration effects in the triple-alpha reaction at low energies

TL;DR

This paper studies the triple-alpha nuclear reaction at low energies, focusing on Coulomb barrier effects and comparing reaction rates with existing data, revealing significantly higher rates at very low temperatures.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed analysis of Coulomb barrier penetration in the triple-alpha process using three-body continuum wave functions and compares reaction rates with previous models.

Findings

Reaction rate at 0.01 GK is about 1000 times larger than NACRE.

The Coulomb potential of three alpha particles significantly influences the reaction.

The adiabatic potential barrier approach provides new insights into low-energy reaction dynamics.

Abstract

We investigate the triple-alpha reaction at low energies, by assuming a direct process. The Coulomb potential of three $\alpha$ particles is examined carefully. The three-body continuum wave functions are generated by calculating an adiabatic potential barrier. We discuss the influence of the $\alpha\alpha$ potential, and compare our reaction rates with the literature. The reaction rate at $T=0.01$\,GK is about 10$^3$ times larger than that of NACRE.