Na studied to constrain supernova type Ia nucleosynthesis*

Uncertainties in the ²⁰Ne(α,p)²³Na reaction rate have been found to show a great deal of variability when predicting the final nuclei abundances produced in type Ia supernovae [1]. Around temperatures of 5 GK, the Gamow window ranges from 2.4 to 5.4 MeV. Previous studies have measured the ground state cross section for this reaction at higher, less astrophysically relevant energies using time reversal reaction experiments [2,3]. Furthermore, those studies do not consider excited state contributions, and therefore, act as only approximations of the total reaction rate. Probing both the ground and first excited states, a cross section measurement was conducted for the ²⁰Ne(α,p)²³Na reaction measuring 142 energy steps between 2.9 and 5 MeV center of mass energies. This work was completed using the Rhinoceros windowless gas target setup and the 5U accelerator at the University of Notre Dame Nuclear Science Lab. The experimental data will be shown and preliminary analysis discussed.

[1] A. Parikh, J. José, I. R. Seitenzahl, and F. K. Röpke, Astronomy & Astrophysics 557, A3 (2013).

[2] C. Bingham, K. Van Der Borg, R. De Meijer, A. Van Der Woude, Nuclear Physics A323, 26 (1979).

[3] R. Spear and I. Wright, Aust. J. Phys. 21, 307 (1968).