Large-scale calculations of <math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mi>β</mi></math>-decay rates and implications for <math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mi>r</mi></math>-process nucleosynthesis

A. Ravlić; Y. Saito; W. Nazarewicz

doi:10.1103/pm1t-9qlb

Large-scale calculations of $β$ -decay rates and implications for $r$ -process nucleosynthesis

A. Ravlić ^1,2,*, Y. Saito ^1,3,4,†, and W. Nazarewicz ^1,5,‡

¹Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA
²Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Bijenička c. 32, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
³Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA
⁴Department of Physics, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA
⁵Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA

^*Contact author: ravlic@frib.msu.edu
^†Contact author: saitoy@frib.msu.edu
^‡Contact author: witek@frib.msu.edu

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Phys. Rev. C 113, 045802 – Published 2 April, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/pm1t-9qlb

Abstract

Nuclear $β$ decay is a key element of the astrophysical rapid neutron capture process ( $r$ process). In this work, we present state-of-the-art global $β$ -decay calculations based on the quantified relativistic nuclear energy density functional theory and the deformed proton-neutron quasiparticle random-phase approximation. Our analysis considers contributions from allowed and first-forbidden transitions. We used two point-coupling functionals with carefully calibrated time-odd terms and isoscalar pairing strength. The new calculations display consistent results for both employed functionals, especially near the neutron drip line, suggesting slower $β$ decays past the $N = 126$ neutron shell closure than in commonly used $β$ -decay models. The new rates, along with the existing rates based on the recent nonrelativistic global calculations, are found to slow down the synthesis of heavy elements in the $r$ process and significantly reduce the contribution of neutron-induced fission.

Physical Review C

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Large-scale calculations of $β$ -decay rates and implications for $r$ -process nucleosynthesis

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Large-scale calculations of β-decay rates and implications for r-process nucleosynthesis

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Large-scale calculations of $β$ -decay rates and implications for $r$ -process nucleosynthesis