Publication Abstracts

Truran 1966

Truran, J.W., 1966: Thermonuclear Reactions in Supernova Shock Waves. Ph.D. thesis. Yale University.

The influence of a supernova shock wave on the abundances of the nuclear species present in the stellar medium is considered. The temperature of the medium immediately behind the shock may typically be ∼5×109 °K. Nuclear reactions proceeding on the products of earlier nuclear burning phases can result in the formation of heavier nuclei.

In order to follow these nuclear transformations, a nuclear reaction network is established providing suitable reaction links connecting neighboring nuclei.

Thermonuclear reaction rates are determined for all neutron, proton, and alpha-particle reactions involving the nuclei in this network from a consideration of the statistical properties of nuclei. The calculated rates are compared with experiment both for charged particle reactions on lighter nuclei and for neutron capture reactions proceeding on nuclei in the mass range A > 60. Good agreement is obtained in both cases.

Employing these calculated values of the rates in the nuclear reaction network, the effect of a peak shock temperature of 5×109 °K on regions of C12, 016, Si28, and S32 is studied. It is shown that the nuclei in the silicon to calcium mass region can be formed by this mechanism.

The observed solar and meteoric abundances display a broad peak in the vicinity of iron, the most abundant nucleus in this region being Fe56 In these calculations, Fe54 is determined to be the most abundant isotope in this mass range. It is suggested that at somewhat higher densities, p ∼ 108-109 gm/cm3, electron capture on S32 may produce large quantities of Si32 before the passage of the shock. The increased ratio of neutrons to protons in the system may lead to the production of large amounts of Fe56, rather than Fe54.

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BibTeX Citation

@phdthesis{tr07000g,
  author={Truran, J. W.},
  title={Thermonuclear Reactions in Supernova Shock Waves},
  year={1966},
  school={Yale University},
  address={New Haven, Conn.},
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - THES
ID  - tr07000g
AU  - Truran, J. W.
PY  - 1966
BT  - Thermonuclear Reactions in Supernova Shock Waves
PB  - Yale University
CY  - New Haven, Conn.
ER  -

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