1. First Direct Measurement of Mg22(α,p)Al25 and Implications for X-Ray Burst Model-Observation Comparisons
- Author
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Randhawa, JS, Ayyad, Y, Mittig, W, Meisel, Z, Ahn, T, Aguilar, S, Alvarez-Pol, H, Bardayan, DW, Bazin, D, Beceiro-Novo, S, Blankstein, D, Carpenter, L, Cortesi, M, Cortina-Gil, D, Gastis, P, Hall, M, Henderson, S, Kolata, JJ, Mijatovic, T, Ndayisabye, F, O’Malley, P, Pereira, J, Pierre, A, Robert, H, Santamaria, C, Schatz, H, Smith, J, Watwood, N, and Zamora, JC
- Subjects
Nuclear and Plasma Physics ,Astronomical Sciences ,Synchrotrons and Accelerators ,Physical Sciences ,Mathematical Sciences ,Engineering ,General Physics ,Mathematical sciences ,Physical sciences - Abstract
Type-I x-ray bursts can reveal the properties of an accreting neutron star system when compared with astrophysics model calculations. However, model results are sensitive to a handful of uncertain nuclear reaction rates, such as ^{22}Mg(α,p). We report the first direct measurement of ^{22}Mg(α,p), performed with the Active Target Time Projection Chamber. The corresponding astrophysical reaction rate is orders of magnitude larger than determined from a previous indirect measurement in a broad temperature range. Our new measurement suggests a less-compact neutron star in the source GS1826-24.
- Published
- 2020