Supernovae as the Site of the r-Process: Implications for Gamma-Ray Astronomy

Abstract

We discuss how detection of gamma-ray emission from the decay of r-process nuclei can improve our understanding of r-process nucleosynthesis. We find that a gamma-ray detector with a sensitivity of 10**(-7)/cm**2/s at 100-700 keV may detect the emission from the decay of Sb125, Cs137, Ce144, Eu155, and Os194 produced in a future Galactic supernova. In addition, such a detector may detect the emission from the decay of Sn126 in the Vela supernova remnant and the diffuse emission from the decay of Sn126 produced by past supernovae in our Galaxy. The required detector sensitivity is similar to what is projected for the proposed Advanced Telescope for High Energy Nuclear Astrophysics (ATHENA). Both the detection of gamma-ray emission from the decay of several r-process nuclei (e.g., Sb125 and Os194) produced in future Galactic supernovae and the detection of emission from the decay of Sn126 in the Vela supernova remnant would prove that supernovae are a site of the r-process. Furthermore, the former detection would allow us to determine whether or not the r-process nuclei are produced in relative proportions specified by the solar r-process abundance pattern in supernova r-process events. Finally, detection of diffuse emission from the decay of Sn126 in our Galaxy would eliminate neutron star/neutron star mergers as the main source for the r-process nuclei near mass number A=126.

14 pages, AASTeX, submitted to the Astrophysical Journal

References in corpus (1)

• Diverse Supernova Sources for the r-Process

Cited by in corpus (21)

• Origin of the Heaviest Elements: the Rapid Neutron-Capture Process
• The r-Process Enriched Low Metallicity Giant HD 115444
• Science with e-ASTROGAM (A space mission for MeV-GeV gamma-ray astrophysics)
• Evidence of Multiple r-Process Sites in the Early Galaxy: New Observations of CS 22892-052
• The r-process in supernova explosions from the collapse of O-Ne-Mg cores
• Supernovae versus Neutron Star Mergers as the Major r-Process Sources
• The Origin of the Heavy Elements: Recent Progress in the Understanding of the r-Process
• r-Process Calculations and Galactic Chemical Evolution
• Supernova Neutrino-Nucleus Astrophysics
• Nucleosynthesis in magneto-rotational supernovae
• Gamma-rays from kilonova: a potential probe of r-process nucleosynthesis
• Nucleosynthesis in neutron-rich ejecta from quark-novae
• Alfven Wave-Driven Proto-Neutron Star Winds And R-Process Nucleosynthesis
• Neutrino-heated winds from millisecond proto-magnetars as sources of the weak r-process
• Finding the remnants of the Milky Way's last neutron star mergers
• Probing r-Process Production of Nuclei Beyond Bi209 with Gamma Rays
• X-ray Decay Lines from Heavy Nuclei in Supernova Remnants as a Probe of the r-Process Origin and the Birth Periods of Magnetars
• Structural effects of ${}^{34}$Na in the ${}^{33}$Na(n,$\gamma {)}^{34}$Na radiative capture reaction
• Neutrinos and the Supernova Origin of the Elements
• The Early Solar System - Chapter 6
• Neutrino Experiments and Their Implications