Z.S. FÜLÖP

In stars with temperatures above 20 × 106 K, hydrogen burning is dominated by the CNO cycle. Its rate is determined by the slowest process, the 14N(p, γ )15O reaction. Deep underground in Italy's Gran Sasso laboratory, at the LUNA 400 kV accelerator, the cross section of this reaction has been measured at energies much lower than ever achieved...

Classical novae are important contributors to the abundances of key isotopes, such as the radioactive 18F, whose observation by satellite missions could provide constraints on nucleosynthesis models in novae. The 17O(p,gamma)18F reaction plays a critical role in the synthesis of both oxygen and fluorine isotopes but its reaction rate is not...

The direct measurement of reaction cross sections at astrophysical energies often requires the use of solid targets of known thickness, isotopic composition, and stoichiometry that are able to withstand high beam currents for extended periods of time. Here, we report on the production and characterisation of isotopically enriched Ta2O5 targets...