Solar-System Abundances of $p$-Nuclides Probe Collective Neutrino Oscillations in Supernovae

Abstract

Direct evidence for collective neutrino oscillations in core-collapse supernovae remains elusive. We show that this quantum phenomenon leaves a footprint on the abundance pattern of proton-rich nuclides in the solar system. Modeling the $\hat{I}½p$-process using a $20M_{\odot }$ progenitor, we map out the dependence of the total yields on the starting radius of the oscillations, self-consistently coupling hydrodynamics and nucleosynthesis. The oscillations boost key $p$-nuclides (${}^{92,94}\text{Mo}$, ${}^{96,98}\text{Ru}$) and long-lived ${}^{92}\text{Nb}$ by up to two orders of magnitude, bringing their abundances into agreement with the observations. The best match is found when oscillations commence within $10\text{ km}$ of the proto-neutron star surface, indicating fast collective oscillations.

10 pages, 3 figures plus Supplemental Material with 11 pages, 8 figures, 1 table