Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei
We present a modified Gamow factor by reinvestigating the conventional assumptions used in its derivation. The conventional Gamow factor, factorized from the total cross section, effectively describes the penetration probabilities (PPs) in low-energy nuclear reactions under the assumption of particl...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acea80 |
| _version_ | 1797680479264047104 |
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| author | Eunseok Hwang Heamin Ko Kyoungsu Heo Myung-Ki Cheoun Dukjae Jang |
| author_facet | Eunseok Hwang Heamin Ko Kyoungsu Heo Myung-Ki Cheoun Dukjae Jang |
| author_sort | Eunseok Hwang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present a modified Gamow factor by reinvestigating the conventional assumptions used in its derivation. The conventional Gamow factor, factorized from the total cross section, effectively describes the penetration probabilities (PPs) in low-energy nuclear reactions under the assumption of particle energies significantly lower than the Coulomb barrier. However, we find that the assumption is invalid for light nuclei, resulting in PPs that depend on the nuclear potential depth for such nuclei. By adopting a potential depth fitted to experimental fusion cross sections, we demonstrate that PPs for light nuclei (D+D, D+T, D+ ^3 He, p+D, p+ ^6 Li, and p+ ^7 Li) become higher than those predicted by the conventional form near the Coulomb barrier. This reduces the Gamow peak energy by a factor of 5.3 maximally compared to the conventional form. Furthermore, we show that the enhancement factor due to the Debye screening effects in the solar core can be reduced by approximately 5%–10% due to the modified PP. Our findings hold implications for evaluating the available energy region in low-energy reaction experiments based on the Gamow peak energy region and for understanding electron screening effects in typical astrophysical environments. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T23:30:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3959c287ce934f8dbfb4d7de010ca384 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T23:30:37Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-3959c287ce934f8dbfb4d7de010ca3842023-09-20T08:33:01ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572023-01-0195517910.3847/1538-4357/acea80Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light NucleiEunseok Hwang0https://orcid.org/0009-0008-5442-1317Heamin Ko1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8622-0789Kyoungsu Heo2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3109-6909Myung-Ki Cheoun3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7810-5134Dukjae Jang4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7684-9519Department of Physics and OMEG Institute, Soongsil University , Seoul 06978, Republic of Korea ; h@soongsil.ac.krDepartment of Physics and OMEG Institute, Soongsil University , Seoul 06978, Republic of Korea ; h@soongsil.ac.krDepartment of Physics and OMEG Institute, Soongsil University , Seoul 06978, Republic of Korea ; h@soongsil.ac.krDepartment of Physics and OMEG Institute, Soongsil University , Seoul 06978, Republic of Korea ; h@soongsil.ac.krCenter for Relativistic Laser Science , Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Gwangju 61005, Republic of Korea ; djjang2@ibs.re.krWe present a modified Gamow factor by reinvestigating the conventional assumptions used in its derivation. The conventional Gamow factor, factorized from the total cross section, effectively describes the penetration probabilities (PPs) in low-energy nuclear reactions under the assumption of particle energies significantly lower than the Coulomb barrier. However, we find that the assumption is invalid for light nuclei, resulting in PPs that depend on the nuclear potential depth for such nuclei. By adopting a potential depth fitted to experimental fusion cross sections, we demonstrate that PPs for light nuclei (D+D, D+T, D+ ^3 He, p+D, p+ ^6 Li, and p+ ^7 Li) become higher than those predicted by the conventional form near the Coulomb barrier. This reduces the Gamow peak energy by a factor of 5.3 maximally compared to the conventional form. Furthermore, we show that the enhancement factor due to the Debye screening effects in the solar core can be reduced by approximately 5%–10% due to the modified PP. Our findings hold implications for evaluating the available energy region in low-energy reaction experiments based on the Gamow peak energy region and for understanding electron screening effects in typical astrophysical environments.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acea80Nuclear reaction cross sectionsNuclear astrophysicsNuclear physics |
| spellingShingle | Eunseok Hwang Heamin Ko Kyoungsu Heo Myung-Ki Cheoun Dukjae Jang Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei The Astrophysical Journal Nuclear reaction cross sections Nuclear astrophysics Nuclear physics |
| title | Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei |
| title_full | Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei |
| title_fullStr | Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei |
| title_short | Reinvestigating the Gamow Factor of Reactions on Light Nuclei |
| title_sort | reinvestigating the gamow factor of reactions on light nuclei |
| topic | Nuclear reaction cross sections Nuclear astrophysics Nuclear physics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acea80 |
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