Nuclear electron capture rate in stellar interiors and the case of 7Be

Abstract

Nuclear electron capture rate from continuum in an astrophysical plasma environment (like solar core) is calculated using a modified Debye–Hückel screening potential and the related non-Gaussian q-distribution of electron momenta. For q = 1 the well-known Debye–Hückel results are recovered. The value of q can be derived from the fluctuation of number of particles and temperature inside the Debye sphere. For 7Be continuum electron capture in solar core, we find an increase of 7–10% over the rate calculated with standard Debye–Hückel potential. The consequence of these results is a reduction of the same percentage of the SSM 8B solar neutrino flux, leaving the SSM 7Be flux unchanged.