Experimental Investigation of the Stellar Nuclear Reaction ^{12}C + ^{12}C at Low Energies

TLDR

The study measured the 12C+12C reactions 2C(12C,a)2ONe, 12C('2C,p)23Na, and 2C('2C,n)23Mg to predict their cross‑sections for stellar carbon burning. The reactions were measured in the center‑of‑mass energy range 3.23–8.75 MeV, with the low‑yield 2C('2C,n)23Mg reaction studied from 4.25 to 6.25 MeV. Observed many excited‑state transitions for alpha particles and protons, and the new cross‑section measurements are lower than previous estimates in the astrophysical energy range.

Abstract

The reactions `2C(12C,a)2ONe, 12C('2C,p)23Na, and `2C('2C,n)23Mg have been studied to provide re- liable predictions of their cross-sections in the energy region of interest in stellar carbon burning. Many excited-state transitions have been observed for the a-particles and protons. Measurements for these particles have been made in the center-of-mass energy range 3.23-8.75 MeV. The relatively small yield of the `2C('2C,n)23Mg reaction has been investigated from 4.25 to 6.25 MeV. The new results for these reactions lead to lower cross-sections than previously estimated for the region of astrophysical interest