Abstract
The cross sections of nuclear reactions between the radioisotope and deuterium, a possible mechanism of reducing the production of mass-7 nuclides in big-bang nucleosynthesis, were measured at center-of-mass energies between 0.2 and 1.5 MeV. The measured cross sections are dominated by the reaction channel, towards which prior experiments were mostly insensitive. A new resonance at 0.36(5) MeV with a strength of was observed inside the relevant Gamow window. Calculations of nucleosynthesis outcomes based on the experimental cross section show that the resonance reduces the predicted abundance of primordial , but not sufficiently to solve the primordial lithium problem.
- Received 23 August 2018
- Revised 3 December 2018
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.122.182701
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