The electrostatic screening of nuclear reactions in dense stellar plasma

Details The electrostatic screening of nuclear reactions in dense stellar plasma The electrostatic screening of nuclear reactions in dense stellar plasma

Feb 2007

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007aipc..891..315s&link_type=abstract

TOURS SYMPOSIUM ON NUCLEAR PHYSICS VI. AIP Conference Proceedings, Volume 891, pp. 315-323 (2007).

Physics

Nuclear Physics

2

Hydrostatic Stellar Nucleosynthesis, Particle Emission, Solar Wind, Solar Wind Plasma, Sources Of Solar Wind

Scientific paper

We review the derivation of the electrostatic screening from first principles and show the basic properties of the screening process.
We start with a numerical experiment in which a simplified finite range potential interaction between two particles is assumed and show how the screening builds up as the range of the interaction increases.
We then turn to the screening of nuclear reactions in the Sun and show that under the conditions prevailing in the Sun in particular and in stars in general, the number of particles in the Debye sphere is of the order of unity. Consequently, fluctuations play a dominant role in the screening process. The fluctuations lead to an effective time dependent potential. The consequence is an energy exchange between the scattering particles and the surrounding plasma which depends on the energy of the particles. Particles with low kinetic energy lose on the average energy to the plasma and vice versa with high energy particles.
Next, we adopt a second approach to the screening problem. The approach is based on the Langevin equation for charged particles with the Rosenbluth potential. We show how the two completely independent methods yield the same physical results.
We then review the arguments for a static screening based on a static potential and show its basic assumptions and shortcomings. The particular assumptions leading to the Salpeter formula are discussed along with the approximations involved in its derivation. One of the fundamental assumptions in the Salpeter approximation is that the scattering is fully elastic. The inelastic nature of the collisions, which is dominant in the present calculations, is clarified.
The variation of the screening of the proton-proton reaction with the plasma parameter is given.

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