ASTRO 1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 28: Degenerate Matter, Neutron Capture, White Dwarf
Document Summary
What we"re doing today: late stages of evolution for low mass (0. 4 to 4 m0) stars. The agb, dredge up, and mass loss. Type ia supernova explosions: evolution of high-mass stars. Synthesis of elements with atomic number < 26. Core-collapse (type ii) supernova: neutron capture elements, formation of neutron stars and black holes. Stars more massive than about 1. 3 mo burn hydrogen via the cno cycle (the carbon nitrogen oxygen cycle. 13n is unstable and beta decays to 13c. 13c captures a proton and becomes 14n. 14n captures another proton and becomes 15o. 15n captures a proton and produces a helium nucleus and 12c: 12c is a catalyst because 1 goes in and 1 comes out so it isn"t used up. The end state of low mass stars: white dwarfs: a white dwarf is not really a star. There is no nuclear fusion in its core.
