Impact Of Nuclear Uncertainties Research Articles

Landau quantization and neutron emissions by nuclei in the crust of a magnetar

Magnetars are neutron stars endowed with surface magnetic fields of the order of 1014 – 1015 G, and with presumably much stronger fields in their interior. As a result of Landau quantization of electron motion, the neutron-drip transition in the crust of a magnetar is shifted to either higher or lower densities depending on the magnetic field strength. The impact of nuclear uncertainties is explored considering the recent series of Brussels-Montreal microscopic nuclear mass models. All these models are based on the Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov method with generalized Skyrme functionals. They differ in their predictions for the symmetry energy coefficient at saturation, and for the stiffness of the neutron-matter equation of state. For comparison, we have also considered the very accurate but more phenomenological model of Duflo and Zuker. Although the equilibrium composition of the crust of a magnetar and the onset of neutron emission are found to be model dependent, the quantum oscillations of the threshold density are essentially universal.

Recent advances in the modelling of classical novae and type I X-ray bursts

Classical nova outbursts and type I X-ray bursts are thermonuclear stellar explosions driven by charged-particle reactions. Extensive numerical simulations of nova explosions have shown that the accreted envelopes attain peak temperatures between 0.1 and 0.4 GK, for about several hundred seconds, and therefore, their ejecta is expected to show signatures of significant nuclear activity. Indeed, it has been claimed that novae play some role in the enrichment of the interstellar medium through a number of intermediate-mass elements. This includes 17O, 15N, and 13C, systematically overproduced in huge amounts with respect to solar abundances, with a lower contribution to a number of species with A<40, such as 7Li, 19F, or 26Al. In this review, we present new 1-D hydrodynamic models of classical nova outbursts, from the onset of accretion up to the explosion and ejection phases. Special emphasis is put on their gross observational properties (including constraints from meteoritic presolar grains and potential gamma-ray signatures) and on their associated nucleosynthesis. Multidimensional models of mixing at the core-envelope interface during outbursts will also be presented. The impact of nuclear uncertainties on the final yields will be also outlined. Detailed analysis of the relevant reactions along the main nuclear path for type I X-ray bursts has only been scarcely addressed, mainly in the context of parameterized one-zone models. Here, we present a detailed study of the nucleosynthesis and nuclear processes powering type I X-ray bursts. The reported bursts have been computed by means of a spherically symmetric (1D), Lagrangian, hydrodynamic code, linked to a nuclear reaction network that contains 325 isotopes (from 1H to 107Te), and 1392 nuclear processes. These evolutionary sequences, followed from the onset of accretion up to the explosion and expansion stages, have been performed for two different metallicities to explore the dependence between the extension of the main nuclear flow and the initial metal content. We carefully analyze the physical parameters that determine the light curve (including recurrence times, ratios between persistent and burst luminosities, or the extent of the envelope expansion). Results are in qualitative agreement with the observed properties of some well-studied bursting sources.

Classical and Recurrent Nova Models

AbstractRemarkable progress in the understanding of nova outbursts has been achieved through combined efforts in photometry, spectroscopy and numerical simulations. According to the thermonuclear runaway model, novae are powered by thermonuclear explosions in the hydrogen-rich envelopes transferred from a low-mass stellar companion onto a close white dwarf star. Extensive numerical simulations in 1-D have shown that the accreted envelopes attain peak temperatures ranging between 108 and 4 × 108 K, for about several hundred seconds, hence allowing extensive nuclear processing which eventually shows up in the form of nucleosynthetic fingerprints in the ejecta. Indeed, it has been claimed that novae can play a certain role in the enrichment of the interstellar medium through a number of intermediate-mass elements. This includes 17O, 15N, and 13C, systematically overproduced with respect to solar abundances, plus a lower contribution in a number of other species (A &lt; 40), such as 7Li, 19F, or 26Al. At the turn of the XXI Century, classical novae have entered the era of multidimensional models, which provide a new insight into the physical mechanisms that drive mixing at the core-envelope interface.In this review, we will present hydrodynamic models of classical novae, from the onset of accretion up to the explosion and ejection stages, both for classical and recurrent novae, with special emphasis on their gross observational properties and their associated nucleosynthesis. The impact of nuclear uncertainties on the final yields will be discussed. Recent results from 2-D models of mixing during classical nova outbursts will also be presented.