Extended atomic data for oxygen abundance analyses

As the most abundant element in the universe after hydrogen and helium, oxygen plays a key role in planetary, stellar, and galactic astrophysics. Its abundance is especially influential in terms of stellar structure and evolution, and as the dominant opacity contributor at the base of the Sun's convection zone, it is central to the discussion on the solar modelling problem. However, abundance analyses require complete and reliable sets of atomic data. We present extensive atomic data for O I by using the multiconfiguration Dirac-Hartree-Fock and relativistic configuration interaction methods. We provide the lifetimes and transition probabilities for radiative electric dipole transitions and we compare them with results from previous calculations and available measurements. The accuracy of the computed transition rates is evaluated by the differences between the transition rates in Babushkin and Coulomb gauges, as well as via a cancellation factor analysis. Out of the 989 computed transitions in this work, 205 are assigned to the accuracy classes AA-B, that is, with uncertainties smaller than 10%, following the criteria defined by the Atomic Spectra Database from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. We discuss the influence of the new log(gf) values on the solar oxygen abundance, ultimately advocating for log epsilon(O) = 8.70 +/- 0.04.

Automated summary

As the most abundant element in the universe after hydrogen and helium, oxygen plays a crucial role in various astrophysical phenomena. This study provides extensive atomic data for oxygen, including lifetimes and transition probabilities, which are important for abundance analyses. The computed transition rates show high accuracy, with 205 transitions having uncertainties smaller than 10%. The new log(gf) values significantly influence the solar oxygen abundance, suggesting a value of log epsilon(O) = 8.70 +/- 0.04.