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One of the main neutron sources for the astrophysical s-process is the reaction 13C({\alpha},n)16O, taking place in thermally pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch stars at temperatures around 90 MK. To model the nucleosynthesis during this process the reaction cross section needs to be known in the 150-230keV energy window (Gamow peak). At these sub-Coulomb energies cross section direct measurements are severely affected by the low event rate, making us rely on input from indirect methods and extrapolations from higher-energy direct data. This leads to an uncertainty in the cross section at the relevant energies too high to reliably constrain the nuclear physics input to s-process calculations. We present the results from a new deep-underground measurement of 13C({\alpha},n)16O, covering the energy range 230-300keV, with drastically reduced uncertainties over previous measurements and for the first time providing data directly inside the s-process Gamow peak. Selected stellar models have been computed to estimate the impact of our revised reaction rate. For stars of nearly solar composition, we find sizeable variations of some isotopes, whose production is influenced by the activation of close-by branching points that are sensitive to the neutron density, in particular the two radioactive nuclei 60Fe and 205Pb, as well as 152Gd, Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, accepted on PRL on 17th August 2021

The astrophysical Li6(p,γ)Be7 reaction occurs during Big Bang nucleosynthesis and the pre-main sequence and main sequence phases of stellar evolution. The low-energy trend of its cross section remains uncertain, since different measurements have provided conflicting results. A recent experiment reported a resonancelike structure at center-of-mass energy 195 keV, associated to a positive-parity state of Be7. The existence of such resonance is still a matter of debate. We report a new measurement of the Li6(p,γ)Be7 cross section performed at the Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics, covering the center-of-mass energy range E=60-350 keV. Our results rule out the existence of low-energy resonances. The astrophysical S-factor varies smoothly with energy, in agreement with theoretical models.

One of the main neutron sources for the astrophysical s-process is the reaction 13C(��,n)16O, taking place in thermally pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch stars at temperatures around 90 MK. To model the nucleosynthesis during this process the reaction cross section needs to be known in the 150-230keV energy window (Gamow peak). At these sub-Coulomb energies cross section direct measurements are severely affected by the low event rate, making us rely on input from indirect methods and extrapolations from higher-energy direct data. This leads to an uncertainty in the cross section at the relevant energies too high to reliably constrain the nuclear physics input to s-process calculations. We present the results from a new deep-underground measurement of 13C(��,n)16O, covering the energy range 230-300keV, with drastically reduced uncertainties over previous measurements and for the first time providing data directly inside the s-process Gamow peak. Selected stellar models have been computed to estimate the impact of our revised reaction rate. For stars of nearly solar composition, we find sizeable variations of some isotopes, whose production is influenced by the activation of close-by branching points that are sensitive to the neutron density, in particular the two radioactive nuclei 60Fe and 205Pb, as well as 152Gd, 7 pages, 4 figures, accepted on PRL on 17th August 2021

The synthesis of heavy, proton rich isotopes is a poorly understood astrophysical process. Thermonuclear (type Ia) supernova explosions are among the suggested sites and the abundance of some isotopes present in the early Solar System may be used to test the models. 92Nb is such an isotope and one of the reactions playing a role in its synthesis is 91Zr(p,γ)92Nb. As no experimental cross sections were available for this reaction so far, nucleosynthesis models had to solely rely on theoretical calculations. In the present work the cross section of 91Zr(p,γ)92mNb has been measured at astrophysical energies by activation. The results excellently confirm the predictions of cross sections and reaction rates for 91Zr(p,γ)92Nb, as used in astrophysical simulations.

Direct measurements of reaction cross-sections at astrophysical energies often require the use of solid targets able to withstand high ion beam currents for extended periods of time. Thus, monitoring target thickness, isotopic composition, and target stoichiometry during data taking is critical to account for possible target modifications and to reduce uncertainties in the final cross-section results. A common technique used for these purposes is the Nuclear Resonant Reaction Analysis (NRRA), which however requires that a narrow resonance be available inside the dynamic range of the accelerator used. In cases when this is not possible, as for example the 13C(alpha,n)16O reaction recently studied at low energies at the Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics (LUNA) in Italy, alternative approaches must be found. Here, we present a new application of the shape analysis of primary gamma rays emitted by the 13C(p,g)14N radiative capture reaction. This approach was used to monitor 13C target degradation {\em in situ} during the 13C(alpha,n)16O data taking campaign. The results obtained are in agreement with evaluations subsequently performed at Atomki (Hungary) using the NRRA method. A preliminary application for the extraction of the 13C(alpha,n)16O reaction cross-section at one beam energy is also reported., Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, to be published in EPJ A

In order to provide data for the simulation of the astrophysical gamma-process, the cross section measurement of the (124)xe(p,gamma)Cs-125 reaction is in progress at MTA Atomki using the activation technique. Precise information on the decay characteristics of the reaction products is of crucial importance for measurements carried out using this method. The half-lives of the produced Cs-125 and its daughter Xe-125 are published in previous works, but with large uncertainties and ambiguous values. To make these nuclear parameters more precise, the half-lives have been re-measured with high precision using gamma-spectroscopy. The obtained new half-life values are t(1/2) = 44.35 +/- 0.29 minutes for Cs-125 and t(1/2) = 16.87 +/- 0.08 hours for Xe-125. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Background] Alpha-nucleus optical potentials are basic ingredients of statistical model calculations used in nucleosynthesis simulations. While the nucleon+nucleus optical potential is fairly well known, for the alpha+nucleus optical potential several different parameter sets exist and large deviations, reaching sometimes even an order of magnitude, are found between the cross section predictions calculated using different parameter sets. [Purpose] A measurement of the radiative alpha-capture and the alpha-induced reaction cross sections on the nucleus 115In at low energies allows a stringent test of statistical model predictions. Since experimental data is scarce in this mass region, this measurement can be an important input to test the global applicability of alpha+nucleus optical model potentials and further ingredients of the statistical model. [Methods] The reaction cross sections were measured by means of the activation method. The produced activities were determined by off-line detection of the gamma-rays and characteristic x-rays emitted during the electron capture decay of the produced Sb isotopes. The 115In(alpha,gamma)119Sb and 115In(alpha,n)118Sbm reaction cross sections were measured between Ec.m. = 8.83 MeV - 15.58 MeV, and the 115In(alpha,n)118Sbg reaction was studied between Ec.m. = 11.10 MeV - 15.58 MeV. The theoretical analysis was performed within the statistical model.

Background: The reaction rates used in gamma-process nucleosynthesis network calculations are mostly derived from theoretical, statistical model cross sections. Experimental data is scarce for charged particle reactions at astrophysical, low energies. Where experimental (alpha,gamma) data exists, it is often strongly overestimated by Hauser-Feshbach statistical model calculations. Further experimental alpha-capture cross sections in the intermediate and heavy mass region are necessary to test theoretical models and to gain understanding of heavy element nucleosynthesis in the astrophysical gamma process.Purpose: The aim of the present work is to measure the Sb-121(alpha,gamma) I-125, Sb-121(alpha, n) I-124, and Sb-123(alpha, n) I-126 reaction cross sections. These measurements are important tests of astrophysical reaction rate predictions and extend the experimental database required for an improved understanding of p-isotope production.Method: The alpha-induced reactions on natural and enriched antimony targets were investigated using the activation technique. The (alpha,gamma) cross sections of Sb-121 were measured and are reported for the first time. To determine the cross section of the Sb-121(alpha,gamma) I-125, Sb-121(alpha, n) I-124, and Sb-123(alpha, n) I-126 reactions, the yields of. rays following the beta decay of the reaction products were measured. For the measurement of the lowest cross sections, the characteristic x rays were counted with a low-energy photon spectrometer detector.Results: The cross section of the Sb-121(alpha,gamma) I-125, Sb-121(alpha, n) I-124, and Sb-123(alpha, n) I-126 reactions were measured with high precision in an energy range between 9.74 and 15.48 MeV, close to the astrophysically relevant energy window. The results are compared with the predictions of statistical model calculations. The (alpha, n) data show that the a widths are predicted well for these reactions. The (alpha,gamma) results are overestimated by the calculations but this is because of the applied neutron and gamma widths.Conclusions: Relevant for the astrophysical reaction rate is the alpha width used in the calculations. While for other reactions the alpha widths seem to have been overestimated and their energy dependence was not described well in the measured energy range, this is not the case for the reactions studied here. The result is consistent with the proposal that additional reaction channels, such as Coulomb excitation, may have led to the discrepancies found in other reactions.

It is crucial to measure reaction cross sections relevant to the astrophysical gamma process so that theoretical reaction rates can be tested and validated with experimental data. The total cross sections for the Er-162(p,gamma)Tm-163 and the Er-162(p,n)Tm-162 reactions have been measured by the activation method in center-of-mass energies from 3.973 to 8.944 MeV and from 5.962 to 8.944 MeV, respectively. The nucleus Er-162 is the heaviest p nuclide to be measured by the activation method using gamma-ray spectroscopy, so far. It is important to note that the energy range for the (p, gamma) reaction measurement covers a large fraction of the astrophysically relevant energy region between 2.71 and 5.34 MeV. The targets were prepared by evaporating 28.2% isotopically enriched (Er2O3)-Er-162 powder onto carbon backing foils, and bombarded with proton beams provided by the FN Tandem Accelerator at the University of Notre Dame. The reaction yields have been determined by the observed activity of produced radioactive isotopes, which was detected offline by a high-purity germanium detector. The results are presented and compared with calculations from two statistical model codes: NON-SMOKER and TALYS.

Background: alpha-nucleus potentials play an essential role for the calculation of alpha-induced reaction cross sections at low energies in the statistical model. Uncertainties of these calculations are related to ambiguities in the adjustment of the potential parameters to experimental elastic scattering angular distributions and to the energy dependence of the effective alpha-nucleus potentials.

The NO cycle takes place in the deepest layer of a H-burning core or shell, when the temperature exceeds T {\simeq} 30 {\cdot} 106 K. The O depletion observed in some globular cluster giant stars, always associated with a Na enhancement, may be due to either a deep mixing during the RGB (red giant branch) phase of the star or to the pollution of the primordial gas by an early population of massive AGB (asymptotic giant branch) stars, whose chemical composition was modified by the hot bottom burning. In both cases, the NO cycle is responsible for the O depletion. The activation of this cycle depends on the rate of the 15N(p,��)16O reaction. A precise evaluation of this reaction rate at temperatures as low as experienced in H-burning zones in stellar interiors is mandatory to understand the observed O abundances. We present a new measurement of the 15N(p,��)16O reaction performed at LUNA covering for the first time the center of mass energy range 70-370 keV, which corresponds to stellar temperatures between 65 {\cdot} 106 K and 780 {\cdot}106 K. This range includes the 15N(p,��)16O Gamow-peak energy of explosive H-burning taking place in the external layer of a nova and the one of the hot bottom burning (HBB) nucleosynthesis occurring in massive AGB stars. With the present data, we are also able to confirm the result of the previous R-matrix extrapolation. In particular, in the temperature range of astrophysical interest, the new rate is about a factor of 2 smaller than reported in the widely adopted compilation of reaction rates (NACRE or CF88) and the uncertainty is now reduced down to the 10% level., 6 pages, 5 figures

An escape-suppressed, composite high-purity germanium detector of the Clover type has been installed at the Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics (LUNA) facility, deep underground in the Gran Sasso Laboratory, Italy. The laboratory gamma-ray background of the Clover detector has been studied underground at LUNA and, for comparison, also in an overground laboratory. Spectra have been recorded both for the single segments and for the virtual detector formed by online addition of all four segments. The effect of the escape-suppression shield has been studied as well. Despite their generally higher intrinsic background, escape-suppressed detectors are found to be well suited for underground nuclear astrophysics studies. As an example for the advantage of using a composite detector deep underground, the weak ground state branching of the Ep = 223 keV resonance in the 24Mg(p,gamma)25Al reaction is determined with improved precision., 8 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; as accepted by Eur. Phys. J. A

To improve the reliability of statistical model calculations in the region of heavy proton rich isotopes alpha elastic scattering experiments have been performed at ATOMKI, Debrecen, Hungary. The experiments were carried out at several energies above and below the Coulomb barrier with high precision. The measured angular distributions can be used for testing the predictions of the global and regional optical potential parameter sets. Moreover, we derived the variation of the elastic alpha scattering cross section along the Z = 50 (Sn-112 - Sn-124) isotopic and N = 50 (Y-89 - Mo-92) isotonic chains. In this paper we summarize the efforts to provide high precision experimental angular distributions for several A approximate to 100 nuclei to test the global optical potential parameterizations applied to p-process network calculations.

The cross sections of the 70Ge(p,gamma)71As and 76Ge(p,n)76As reactions have been measured with the activation method in the Gamow window for the astrophysical p process. The experiments were carried out at the Van de Graaff and cyclotron accelerators of ATOMKI. The cross sections have been derived by measuring the decay gamma-radiation of the reaction products. The results are compared to the predictions of Hauser-Feshbach statistical model calculations using the code NON-SMOKER. Good agreement between theoretical and experimental S factors is found. Based on the new data, modifications of the optical potential used for low-energy protons are discussed., Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. C

We report on a new measurement of $^{14}$N(p,$��$)$^{15}$O for the ground state capture transition at $E_p$ = 360, 380 and 400 keV, using the 400 kV LUNA accelerator. The true coincidence summing effect --the major source of error in the ground state capture determination-- has been significantly reduced by using a Clover--type gamma detector., 6 pages, 5 figures, Accepted for publication in Journal of Physics G

The 106Cd(alpha,gamma)110Sn reaction cross section has been measured in the energy range of the Gamow window for the astrophysical p-process scenario. The cross sections for 106Cd(alpha,n)109Sn and for 106Cd(alpha,p)109In below the (alpha,n) threshold have also been determined. The results are compared with predictions of the statistical model code NON-SMOKER using different input parameters. The comparison shows that a discrepancy for 106Cd(alpha,gamma)110Sn when using the standard optical potentials can be removed with a different alpha+106Cd potential. Some astrophysical implications are discussed., Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev C

The cross sections for the elastic scattering reactions {112,124}Sn(a,a){112,124}Sn at energies above and below the Coulomb barrier are presented and compared to predictions for global alpha-nucleus potentials. The high precision of the new data allows a study of the global alpha-nucleus potentials at both the proton and neutron-rich sides of an isotopic chain. In addition, local alpha-nucleus potentials have been extracted for both nuclei, and used to reproduce elastic scattering data at higher energies. Predictions from the capture cross section of the reaction 112Sn(a,g)116Te at astrophysically relevant energies are presented and compared to experimental data., 20 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. C

The half-lives of 110Sn and 109In isotopes have been measured with high precision. The results are T1/2 =4.173 +- 0.023 h for 110Sn and T1/2 = 4.167 +-0.018 h for 109In. The precision of the half-lives has been increased by a factor of 5 with respect to the literature values which makes results of the recently measured 106Cd(alpha,gamma)110Sn and 106Cd(alpha,p)109In cross sections more reliable., Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev C as brief report

The 17O(p,γ )18F reaction affects the production of key isotopes (e.g., 18F and 18O) in the explosive hydrogen burning that powers classical novae. Under these explosive conditions, the reaction rate is dominated by contributions from a narrow resonance at Ec.m.= 183 keV and by the combined contributions of direct capture and low-energy tails of broad resonances. At present, the astrophysical reaction rate is not well constrained because of the lack of data in the energy region appropriate to classical novae.

The electron screening in the d(d,p)t reaction has been studied for the deuterated metal Pt at a target temperature T = 20 degrees C to 340 degrees C, and for Co at T = 20 degrees C and 200 degrees C. The enhanced electron screening decreases with increasing temperature, where the data agree with the plasma model of Debye applied to the quasi-free metallic electrons. The data represent the first observation of a temperature dependence of a nuclear cross-section. We also measured the screening effect for the deuterated metal Ti (an element of group 4 of the periodic table) at T = -10 degrees C to 200 degrees C: above 50 degrees C the hydrogen solubility dropped to values far below unity and a large screening effect became observable. Similarly, all metals of groups 3 and 4 and the lanthanides showed a solubility of a few percent at T = 200 degrees C (compared to T = 20 degrees C) and a large screening became also observable. Within the Debye model the deduced number of valence electrons per metallic atom agrees with the corresponding number from the Hall coefficient, for all metals investigated. RI Fulop, Zsolt/B-2262-2008; Aliotta, Marialuisa /H-2567-2012