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Nuclear level densities and gamma-ray strength functions in Ta isotopes and nucleo-synthesis of ¹⁸ᴼTa

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / Most stable and extremely low abundance neutron deficient nuclei with Z ≥ 34 are referred to as p-nuclei. Nearly all p-nuclei with A < 110 are most likely produced in the rp-process while almost all A > 110 are thought to be produced by the photodisintegration of s- and r- process seed nuclei. However, for some nuclear systems, these processes are not sufficient to explain their observed solar abundance. Results from calculations in ¹⁸ᴼTa generally provoke debates since several processes are able, sometimes exclusively, to reproduce the observed ¹⁸ᴼTa abundance in the cosmos, making it a unique case study. Some of the main sources of errors in the predicted reaction rates of ¹⁸ᴼTa arise due to the absence of nuclear data or due to large uncertainties in the nuclear properties such as the nuclear level densities (NLD) and gamma-ray strength functions (γSF) of ¹⁸ᴼ,¹⁸¹Ta. The NLD and γSF are primary ingredients for astrophysical reaction rate calculations based on the Hauser-Feshbach approach. These parameters need to be well understood to improve our
understanding of ¹⁸ᴼTa production in astrophysical environments. In this thesis, new experimental data for the low-energy part of the γSF and NLD in ¹⁸ᴼ,¹⁸¹Ta were extracted, using the so-called Oslo method. An experiment was performed and the NaI(Tl) gamma-ray array and silicon particle telescopes at the Oslo cyclotron laboratory were utilized to measure particle-γ coincidence events from which the NLDs and γSFs are extracted below the neutron separation energy threshold Sn. A beam of ³He was used to populate excited states in ¹⁸ᴼ,¹⁸¹Ta through the inelastic scattering (³He,³He’𝛾)
and the transfer reaction (³He,𝜶𝛾). Based on results from this measurements, the Maxwellian averaged (n, 𝛾) cross sections for the 179Ta(n, γ) and ¹⁸ᴼTa(n, 𝛾) reactions, at the s-process thermal energy of kT = 30 keV (i.e. a temperature of T = 3.5 × 10⁸ K) and p-process thermal energy of 215 keV (T = 2.5 × 10⁹ K), respectively, were computed with the TALYS reaction code. These results can be used to place the nuclear physics aspects of the large network abundance calculations on a solid footing and have potential to improve our understanding of the astrophysical processes and sites involved in the production of nature’s rarest isotope ¹⁸ᴼTa. / National Research Foundation (NRF)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uwc/oai:etd.uwc.ac.za:11394/5321
Date January 2016
CreatorsMalatji, Kgashane Leroy
ContributorsWiedeking, M, Kheswa, B.V., Triambak, S.
PublisherUniversity of the Western Cape
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
RightsUniversity of the Western Cape

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