Influence of nuclear physics inputs and astrophysical conditions on r-process

Abstract

The rapid neutron-capture process ($r$-process) is one of the main mechanisms to explain the origin of heavy elements in the universe. Although the past decades have seen great progress in understanding this process, the related nuclear physics inputs to $r$-process models include significant uncertainty. In this study, ten nuclear mass models, including macroscopic, macroscopic-microscopic, and microscopic models, are used to calculate the $\\beta$-decay rates and neutron-capture rates of the neutron-rich isotopes for the $r$-process simulations occurring in three classes of astrophysical conditions. The final $r$-process abundances include uncertainties introduced by the nuclear mass model mainly through the variation of neutron-capture rates, whereas the uncertainties of $\\beta$-decay rates make a relatively small contribution. The uncertainties in different astrophysical scenarios are also investigated, and are found to be connected to the diverse groups of nuclei produced during nucleosynthesis.