Nucleosynthesis

Nucleosynthesis is the process of element (nuclei) formation.

Three types: Big Bang nucleosynthesis
Stellar (star) nucleosynthesis
Supernova nucleosynthesis
Only stellar and supernova nucleosynthesis are occurring in our universe. Element formation in
our universe relies on nuclear fusion reactions.
(fusion = come together)
Nuclear Fusion
• In nuclear fusion, smaller nuclei collide together to make larger nuclei, and energy is released
in the form of electromagnetic radiation.
• Requires extremely high temperatures and pressures beyond those found on or within Earth.
However, these temperatures and pressures are found inside stars and did occur during the initial
formation of our universe (during the Big Bang event).
• Fusion involves only the nuclei of atoms. At the temperatures at which fusion can occur, matter
exists as a plasma. This is the state of matter where the electrons have been stripped off of the
atoms. Plasma is basically a super high energy, electrically charged gas.
• When nuclei collide, some of the mass of the nuclei is converted to energy by Einstein’s
famous equation, E=mc2. Nuclear fusion releases a lot of energy per gram of material; much
more energy than is released by burning a comparable amount of wood, coal, oil, or gasoline.
BIG BANG THEORY
The big bang theory, a cosmological model that describes how the universe started its expansion
about 13.8 billion years ago, states that the universe continues to move and expand

1. The universe began as a singularity or a point containing all space, time, matter and energy
2. It expanded rapidly in nothingness through a rapid yet peaceful process called inflation
3. The universe cooled down as it expanded
Big Bang Theory
The big bang theory is a cosmological model stating that the universe started its expansion about
13.8 billion years ago. Pieces of evidence supporting this theory are
(1) occurrence of redshift,
(2) background radiation, and
(3) abundance of light elements.
• The Doppler shift or Doppler effect explains that when an object gets closer to us, its light
waves are compressed into shorter wavelengths (blueshifted, blue light has the shortest
wavelength in the visible region).
• On the other hand, when an object moves away from us, its light waves are stretched into
longer wavelengths (redshifted, red light has the longest wavelength in the visible region).
the further the galaxy is from our Milky Way Galaxy,
•the stronger the redshift. A strong redshift means that the object is moving away from us
quickly, while a weaker one means it’s moving away slowly.
They concluded that the redshift occurred due to the expansion of space.
Robert Wilson and Arno Penzias (1965)
Discovered cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR)—a low, steady humming noise
believed to be energy remains
Abundance of Light Elements The observed abundance of light elements supports the big bang
theory. The theory predicts that the universe is composed of 73% hydrogen and 25% helium by
mass. The prediction correlated to the measured abundances of primordial material in
unprocessed gas in some parts of the universe with no stars.
Big Bang Nucleosynthesis
Big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN), also known as primordial nucleosynthesis, is the process of
producing light elements during the big bang expansion
It yields two stable isotopes of hydrogen, two isotopes of helium, some lithium atoms and
beryllium isotopes
STELLAR NUCLEOSYNTHESIS
A star is a very hot ball of gas (plasma). Stars create elements by combining lighter nuclei into
heavier nuclei via nuclear fusion reactions in their cores and releasing energy in the process.
They are natural nuclear reactors.
Evolution of stars
Star formation theory states that stars form
due to the collapse of the dense regions of a
molecular cloud.
- Nebula – giant cloud of gas and dust
- Protostar – the stellar core formed from the fragment of the collapsed cloud due to pulled
hydrogen gas together.
The strong gravitational force causes the protostar to contract & increase in temperature to 10
million K & nuclear reaction begins.
The reaction release positrons & neutrinos that increase pressure & stop contraction

Main sequence star

-Main Sequence star- formed when the protostar gravitational equilibrium is reached when
contractions stops. Hydrogen is converted to helium
Hydrogen is fused into helium (proton-proton chain)
- Fusion stops and the pressure in the core decreases
- Gravity squeezes the star – helium & hydrogen burning
Helium is converted to carbon & Hydrogen is converted to helium forming a RED GIANT –
glows red.
WHITE DWARF – remnants when stars nuclear fuel is depleted. The outer material is blown off
into space leaving only the hot inert carbon
Black Dwarf –the remain of the white dwarf & cooled down no longer emits life & heat
Stellar Nucleosynthesis
Stars much larger than our Sun can fuse heavier elements from lighter elements.
These giant stars have an “onion layer” structure.
As you proceed deeper into the star, temperatures and pressures increase, and heavier and heavier
nuclei are fused together.
The heaviest element that can be made in a star is iron
Note: In the adjacent diagrams, the term “burning” really means nuclear fusion!
MASSIVE STAR
Multiple shell red super giant- A massive star has enough mass such that temperature & pressure
increase to cause Carbon fusion
- The fusion of elements continues until iron is formed by Silicon fusion.
- The fusion of elements lighter than iron releases energy
- Therefore, elements lighter than and including iron can be produced in a massive star
Supernova – explosion of the stars. Occurs when the core can no longer produce energy to
resist gravity. Gravity squeezes the core until the star explodes & releases a large amount of
energy
BLACKHOLE – region in space where gravity is too strong that no matter can escape from
it.
NEUTRON STAR- smallest star formed from a supernova explosion
Supernova Nucleosynthesis
Elements heavier than Iron (Z = 26) are made primarily when giant stars explode in
supernovae.
• Even the largest stars do not have core temperatures and pressures high enough to fuse iron
into heavier elements. Therefore, when a star runs out of nuclear fuel (lighter nuclei) and can
no longer undergo fusion reactions, gravity causes the star to collapse. The gravitational
collapse triggers a phenomenally large explosion called a supernova. The explosion of the
star momentarily generates high enough temperatures and pressures to cause nuclear fusion
reactions that make elements with atomic numbers 27-92 (Cobalt to Uranium).
• Since only the largest stars can explode in supernovae events, elements with atomic
numbers 27-92 are rarer than elements with atomic numbers 1-26
(see abundance diagram to right)