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First direct measurement of Cu59(p,α)Ni56: A step towards constraining the Ni-Cu cycle in the cosmos

J. S. Randhawa1,*, R. Kanungo2,3,†, J. Refsgaard2,3, P. Mohr4, T. Ahn1, M. Alcorta3, C. Andreoiu5, S. S. Bhattacharjee2,3,6, B. Davids3,7 et al.

G. Christian2, A. A. Chen8, R. Coleman9, P. E. Garrett9, G. F. Grinyer10, E. Gyabeng Fuakye10, G. Hackman3, J. Hollett2, R. Jain11, K. Kapoor10, R. Krücken3,12, A. Laffoley9, A. Lennarz3,8, J. Liang8, Z. Meisel13, B. Nikhil2, A. Psaltis14, A. Radich9, M. Rocchini9, N. Saei10, M. Saxena13, M. Singh2, C. Svensson9, P. Subramaniam2, A. Talebitaher10, S. Upadhyayula3, C. Waterfield2, J. Williams3, and M. Williams3

  • 1Department of Physics and Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA
  • 2Astronomy and Physics Department, Saint Mary's University, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 3C3, Canada
  • 3TRIUMF, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 2A3, Canada
  • 4Institute for Nuclear Research (Atomki), P.O. Box 51, Debrecen H-4001, Hungary
  • 5Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
  • 6Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, Husova 240/5, 110 00 Prague 1, Czech Republic
  • 7Department of Physics, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
  • 8Department of Physics and Astronomy, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4M1, Canada
  • 9Department of Physics, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada
  • 10Department of Physics, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan S4S 0A2, Canada
  • 11Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, Michigan 48824, USA
  • 12Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z1, Canada
  • 13Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio 45701, USA
  • 14Institut für Kernphysik, Technische Universität Darmstadt, D-64289 Darmstadt, Schlossgartenstraße 2, Germany

  • *jrandhaw@nd.edu
  • †ritu@triumf.ca
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Phys. Rev. C 104, L042801 – Published 28 October, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.104.L042801

Abstract

Reactions on proton-rich nuclides drive the nucleosynthesis in core collapse supernovae (CCSNe) and in x-ray bursts (XRBs). CCSNe eject the nucleosynthesis products to the interstellar medium and hence are a potential inventory of p nuclei, whereas in XRBs nucleosynthesis powers the light curves. In both astrophysical sites the Ni-Cu cycle, which features a competition between Cu59(p,α)Ni56 and Cu59(p,γ)Zn60, could potentially halt the production of heavier elements. Here, we report the first direct measurement of Cu59(p,α)Ni56 using a reaccelerated Cu59 beam and a cryogenic solid hydrogen target. Our results show that the reaction proceeds predominantly to the ground state of Ni56, and the experimental rate has been found to be lower than Hauser-Feshbach based statistical model predictions. New results hints that the νp process could operate at higher temperatures than previously inferred and therefore remains a viable site for synthesizing the heavier elements.

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Phys. Rev. C 104, L042801– Published 28 October, 2021
  • Received 12 July 2021
  • Accepted 6 October 2021
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