Early Solar System $r$-process Abundances Limit Collapsar Origin

Abstract

Heavy elements produced exclusively through rapid neutron capture (the '$r$-process') originate from violent cosmic explosions. While neutron star mergers are the primary candidates, another plausible production site are 'collapsars'---collapsing massive stars that form a black hole with an accretion disk. Here we show that collapsars are too rare to be the prime origin of $r$-process elements in the Solar System. By comparing numerical simulations with the early Solar System abundances of actinides produced exclusively through the $r$-process, we exclude higher than 20% contribution from collapsars with 90% confidence. We additionally limit $r$-process ejecta masses from collapsars to less than 10% of the ejecta mass from neutron star mergers, about $10^{-2}$M${}_{\odot }$.

Accepted for publication on ApJ Letters; 5 pages, 3 figures

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• Signatures of R-process Enrichment in Supernovae from Collapsars
• Timing the r-Process Enrichment of the Ultra-Faint Dwarf Galaxy Reticulum II
• The R-Process Alliance: Fifth Data Release from the Search for R-Process-Enhanced Metal-poor Stars in the Galactic Halo with the GTC
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• R-process beta-decay neutrino flux from binary neutron star mergers and collapsars
• Did a Kilonova Set Off in Our Galactic Backyard 3.5 Myr ago?
• Radio Constraints on $r$-process Nucleosynthesis by Collapsars