Weak interaction rates of neutron-rich nuclei and ther-process nucleosynthesis

Abstract

Weak interaction rates for very short-lived neutron-rich nuclides involved in the r process are mostly beyond the experimental reach at the present time. Accurate theoretical predictions demand a coherent extrapolation of different nuclear properties away from the experimentally known regions. The b-decay and neutrino-capture rates are estimated within the extended Thomas-Fermi plus Strutinsky integral method and the continuum quasiparticle random phase approximation. This approximation on the self-consistent calculation of the ground-state and b-decay properties is described. The large-scale calculations of the b-strength function for stable and short-lived nuclei are performed to estimate, simultaneously, the b-decay and electron neutrino capture rates for nuclides of relevance to the r-process nucleosynthesis. A comparison of the results with existing experimental data, global calculations, and self-consistent microscopic predictions is presented.