Great progress has been made regarding our understanding of heavy-element nucleosynthesis in recent years. In particular, the 2017 discovery of a neutron-star merger with its kilonova confirmed that such astrophysical sites can produce heavy elements through the rapid neutron-capture process. At the same time, as more and more high-quality observations become available, the heavy-element...
Pioneering nuclear reaction studies of astrophysical interest have been carried out at the Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics (LUNA) for about three decades (see [1] for a recent review). Shielded by 1.4 km of rock under the Gran Sasso mountain, LUNA benefits from a million-fold reduction in cosmic-ray induced background compared to surface laboratories. This has made it possible,...
The Oslo Method is a powerful tool that allows for detailed studies of the Nuclear Level Density (NLD) and $\gamma$-ray strength function ($\gamma$SF) at energies below the neutron separation energy. In the last decade, several Oslo Method experiments have been performed at iThemba LABS, most notably with inverse-kinematics. Coupling the Oslo Method with inverse kinematics allows for study of...
Abstract
As much as nucleosynthesis or element formation is concerned, almost all the nuclei heavier than iron have been made in part by the slow neutron capture and the rapid neutron capture processes (≈ 50% each), respectively known as the s- and r- processes [1].
The neutron capture reactions 192Ir(n,γ)193Ir and 193Ir(n,γ)194Ir are indirectly studied by analysing data obtained from the...
