The weak s-process and its relation to explosive nucleosynthesis

Abstract

Considerable effort in experimental nuclear astrophysics, stellar modeling, and observations led to an improved understanding of various nucleosynthesis scenarios in the last decades. This is particularly true for the main s‐process in low‐mass AGB stars, which is largely responsible for the production of about half of the elemental abundances in the mass range 90⩽A⩽209. The weak s‐process, which produces elements with A⩽90, however, is much less understood. Since this process operates in massive stars it is ultimately linked with the abundance contributions of explosive nucleosynthesis in supernovae (SN II). In this field more accurate neutron capture cross sections in the mass range 56⩽A⩽90 are indispensable for a meaningful comparison of model predictions with observational data. Also, the abundant light elements with A<56 play an important role, since they act as neutron poisons and affect the stellar neutron balance. In this context, the impact of new results for neutron capture cross sections on lig...