We study the production of very light elements (Z < 20) in the dynamical and spiral-wave wind ejecta of binary neutron star mergers by combining detailed nucleosynthesis calculations with the outcome of numerical relativity merger simulations. All our models are targeted to GW170817 and include neutrino radiation. We explore different finite-temperature, composition-dependent nuclear equations of state, and binary mass ratios, and find that hydrogen and helium are the most abundant light elements. For both elements, the decay of free neutrons is the driving nuclear reaction. In particular, ∼0.5–2 × 10⁻⁶ M _⊙ of hydrogen are produced in the fast expanding tail of the dynamical ejecta, while ∼1.5–11 × 10⁻⁶ M _⊙ of helium are synthesized in the bulk of the dynamical ejecta, usually in association with heavy r-process elements. By computing synthetic spectra, we find that the possibility of detecting hydrogen and helium features in kilonova spectra is very unlikely for fiducial masses and luminosities, even when including nonlocal thermodynamic equilibrium effects. The latter could be crucial to observe helium lines a few days after merger for faint kilonovae or for luminous kilonovae ejecting large masses of helium. Finally, we compute the amount of strontium synthesized in the dynamical and spiral-wave wind ejecta, and find that it is consistent with (or even larger than, in the case of a long-lived remnant) the one required to explain early spectral features in the kilonova of GW170817.

Isotope ratios can be measured in presolar SiC grains from ancient asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars at permil-level (0.1%) precision. Such precise grain data permit derivation of more stringent constraints and calibrations on mixing efficiency in AGB models than traditional spectroscopic observations. In this paper we compare SiC heavy-element isotope ratios to a new series of FRUITY models that include the effects of mixing triggered by magnetic fields. Based on 2D and 3D simulations available in the literature, we propose a new formulation, upon which the general features of mixing induced by magnetic fields can be derived. The efficiency of such a mixing, on the other hand, relies on physical quantities whose values are poorly constrained. We present here our calibration by comparing our model results with the heavy-element isotope data of presolar SiC grains from AGB stars. We demonstrate that the isotopic compositions of all measured elements (Ni, Sr, Zr, Mo, Ba) can be simultaneously fitted by adopting a single magnetic field configuration in our new FRUITY models.

Low-mass asymptotic giant branch stars are among the most important polluters of the interstellar medium. In their interiors, the main component (A ≳ 90) of the slow neutron capture process (the s-process) is synthesized, the most important neutron source being the ¹³C(α,n)¹⁶O reaction. In this paper, we review its current experimental status, discussing possible future synergies between some experiments currently focused on the determination of its rate. Moreover, in order to determine the level of precision needed to fully characterize this reaction, we present a theoretical sensitivity study, carried out with the FUNS evolutionary stellar code and the NEWTON post-process code. We modify the rate up to a factor of 2 with respect to a reference case. We find that variations of the ¹³C(α,n)¹⁶O rate do not appreciably affect s-process distributions for masses above 3 M _⊙ at any metallicity. Apart from a few isotopes, in fact, the differences are always below 5%. The situation is completely different if some ¹³C burns in a convective environment: this occurs in FUNS models with M < 3 M _⊙ at solar-like metallicities. In this case, a change of the ¹³C(α,n)¹⁶O reaction rate leads to nonnegligible variations of the element surface distribution (10% on average), with larger peaks for some elements (such as rubidium) and neutron-rich isotopes (such as ⁸⁶Kr and ⁹⁶Zr). Larger variations are found in low-mass, low-metallicity models if protons are mixed and burned at very high temperatures. In this case, the surface abundances of the heavier elements may vary by more than a factor of 50.

We present post-process neutron-capture computations for Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars of 1.5–3 M _⊙ and metallicities −1.3 ≤ [Fe/H] ≤ 0.1. The reference stellar models are computed with the FRANEC code, using the Schwarzschild's criterion for convection; our motivations for this choice are outlined. We assume that MHD processes induce the penetration of protons below the convective boundary, when the Third Dredge Up occurs. There, the ¹³C n-source can subsequently operate, merging its effects with those of the ²²Ne(α, n)²⁵Mg reaction, activated at the temperature peaks characterizing AGB stages. This work has three main scopes. (i) We provide a grid of abundance yields, as produced through our MHD mixing scheme, which are uniformly sampled in mass and metallicity. From this, we deduce that the solar s-process distribution, as well as the abundances in recent stellar populations, can be accounted for, without the need of the extra primary-like contributions suggested in the past. (ii) We formulate analytic expressions for the mass of the ¹³C-pockets generated to allow easy verification of our findings. (iii) We compare our results with observations of evolved stars and with isotopic ratios in presolar SiC grains, also noticing how some flux tubes should survive turbulent disruption, carrying C-rich materials into the winds even when the envelope is O-rich. This wind phase is approximated through the G-component of AGB s-processing. We conclude that MHD-induced mixing is adequate to drive slow n-capture phenomena accounting for observations; our prescriptions should permit its inclusion into current stellar evolutionary codes.

Recent models for evolved low-mass stars (with M ≲ 3 M _⊙), undergoing the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase assume that magnetic flux-tube buoyancy drives the formation of ¹³C reservoirs in He-rich layers. We illustrate their crucial properties, showing how the low abundance of ¹³C generated below the convective envelope hampers the formation of primary ¹⁴N and the ensuing synthesis of intermediate-mass nuclei, like ¹⁹F and ²²Ne. In the mentioned models, their production is therefore of a purely secondary nature. Shortage of primary ²²Ne has also important effects in reducing the neutron density. Another property concerns AGB winds, which are likely to preserve C-rich subcomponents, isolated by magnetic tension, even when the envelope composition is O-rich. Conditions for the formation of C-rich compounds are therefore found in stages earlier than previously envisaged. These issues, together with the uncertainties related to several nuclear physics quantities, are discussed in the light of the isotopic admixtures of s-process elements in presolar SiC grains of stellar origin, which provide important and precise constraints to the otherwise uncertain parameters. By comparing nucleosynthesis results with measured SiC data, it is argued that such a detailed series of constraints indicates the need for new measurements of weak-interaction rates in ionized plasmas, as well as of neutron-capture cross sections, especially near the N = 50 and N = 82 neutron magic numbers. Nonetheless, the peculiarity of our models allows us to achieve fits to the presolar grain data of a quality so far never obtained in previously published attempts.

Asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars are considered to be among the most significant contributors to the fluorine budget in our Galaxy. While observations and theory agree at close-to-solar metallicity, stellar models at lower metallicities overestimate the fluorine production with respect to that of heavy elements. We present ¹⁹F nucleosynthesis results for a set of AGB models with different masses and metallicities in which magnetic buoyancy acts as the driving process for the formation of the ¹³C neutron source (the so-called ¹³C pocket). We find that ¹⁹F is mainly produced as a result of nucleosynthesis involving secondary ¹⁴N during convective thermal pulses, with a negligible contribution from the ¹⁴N present in the ¹³C pocket region. A large ¹⁹F production is thus prevented, resulting in lower fluorine surface abundances. As a consequence, AGB stellar models with mixing induced by magnetic buoyancy at the base of the convective envelope agree well with available fluorine spectroscopic measurements at low and close-to-solar metallicity.