CNO AND LI-6 FROM BIG-BANG NUCLEOSYNTHESIS - IMPACT OF UNMEASURED REACTION-RATES

Rates for a number of nuclear reactions not studied in the laboratory are crucial for predicting the outcome of big-bang nucleosynthesis. It is shown in the present investigation that the mass fraction of CNO elements produced in neutron-rich zones in inhomogeneous nucleosynthesis (other parameters fixed) spans almost 3 orders of magnitude depending on the unmeasured rate of Li8(+,n)11B. The possibility of producing observable quantities of primordial Li6 via H3(3He,)6Li is discussed for the first time, and finally it is reported that helium production through H2(2H,) 4He is negligible in all nucleosynthesis scenarios, in spite of recent measurements increasing the low-energy rate by a factor 32. © 1990 The American Physical Society.