Impact of mass uncertainty on astrophysical rates and (p,γ)-(γ,p) equilibrium in the rp-process

The rapid proton capture process (rp-process) is believed to be responsible for energy production and the synthesis of elements in X-ray bursts. Although understanding the (p,gamma)(gamma,p) equilibrium for a wide range of masses during the process is essential, it is hampered by the large uncertainties of several key isotopes participating in the rp-process. In the present work, we investigate the impacts of mass uncertainties on (p,gamma)-(gamma,p) equilibria in the rp-process, which strongly affects the reaction paths, the isotopic abundances of nuclei with A>65, the effective lifetimes of waiting points, and the luminosity of X-ray bursts. The results show that current mass uncertainties still result in rather large deviations up to two orders of magnitude in many astrophysical photodisintegration rates. The numbers of isotopes and the values of the mass resolving power required for precise mass measurements using the multi-reflection time-of-flight (MR-TOF) technique are estimated for future experiments at modern radioactive ion beam facilities, including the RAON in Korea.

Automated summary

The study found that current mass uncertainties lead to significant deviations in astrophysical photodisintegration rates in the rp-process, and advanced techniques will be needed for precise mass measurements in future experiments.