Origin of the heaviest elements: The rapid neutron-capture process
J. J. Cowan, C. Sneden, J. E. Lawler, A. Aprahamian, M. Wiescher, K. Langanke, G. Martı́nez-Pinedo, F.‐K. Thielemann
Abstract
The rapid neutron-capture process plays a major role in the production of heavy elements from Fe to U. This review surveys the history and current understanding of $r$-process nucleosynthesis, covering new data from atomic and nuclear physics, astrophysical modeling of $r$-process sites, astronomical observations of stellar abundances, and galactic chemical evolution. It includes a timely and thorough discussion of plausible $r$-process astrophysical environments, following the first multimessenger observation of a binary neutron-star merger.
Topics & Concepts
Physicsr-processNucleosynthesisNeutron starAstrophysicsSupernovaHypernovaStellar nucleosynthesisAstronomyGalaxyEjectaAccretion (finance)Nuclear astrophysicsGamma-ray bursts and supernovaePulsars and Gravitational Waves ResearchNuclear physics research studies