Cauldrons in the Cosmos

Nuclear Astrophysics

Claus E. Rolfs, William S. Rodney

560 pages, parution le 23/12/2005

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Résumé

An unparalleled reference source for astronomers and physicists and a much-needed textbook for advanced students, Cauldrons in the Cosmos addresses fundamental questions in the burgeoning field of nuclear astrophysics. Claus E. Rolfs and William S. Rodney have made major contributions to this field, and here they focus on the nuclear processes that are the source of the prodigious energy radiated by our sun and the multitude of other stars. They explain how the rates of these processes determine stellar lifetimes and point out that these same processes within stars are responsible for the synthesis of most chemical elements and their isotopes in nature. Those not so produced can be accounted for by reactions taking place in the primordial matter of the Big Bang and by cosmic-ray-induced reactions in the interstellar medium.

Topics addressed in the volume include an overview of the physical universe, an introduction to the physics of stars, definitions and general characteristics of thermonuclear reactions, determination of stellar reaction rates, experimental equipment and methods, hydrogen burning, helium burning, advanced and explosive burning, neutron-induced reactions, and future directions for the field. The book traces the contributions of research from the fields of optical astronomy, radio astronomy, physics (especially nuclear physics), geochemistry, and radio-chemistry, and it is unique in its substantial discussion of a wide range of experimental methods and techniques. The authors have included an extensive bibliography.

"Rolfs and Rodney have made an important and significant contribution to the field of nuclear astrophysics, in both experiment and theory. The reader's effort will be repaid by this look at the history of one of the most exciting developments in astrophysics in this century."
William A. Fowler, Nobel laureate in physics

L'auteur - Claus E. Rolfs

Claus E. Rolfs is professor of physics at the University of Munster.

L'auteur - William S. Rodney

William S. Rodney is the former program director for nuclear physics at the National Science Foundation. Both have published many journal articles in the field of astrophysics.

Sommaire

Foreword
Preface
Astronomy - Observing the Universe
Astrophysics - Explaining the Universe
Definitions and General Characteristics of Thermonuclear Reactions
Determination of Stellar Reaction Rates
Laboratory Equipment and Techniques in Nuclear Astrophysics
Hydrogen Burning
Helium Burning
Advanced and Explosive Burning
Nucleos beyond Iron
Miscellaneous Topics
Epilogue
Appendix: Notation and Units
References
Index

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	PAPIER
Éditeur(s)	The University of Chicago Press
Auteur(s)	Claus E. Rolfs, William S. Rodney
Parution	23/12/2005
Nb. de pages	560
Format	17 x 24
Couverture	Broché
Poids	885g
Intérieur	Noir et Blanc
EAN13	9780226724577
ISBN13	978-0-226-72457-7