The 11C(p,γ)12N reaction rate and the conversion of 3He into CNO Original Research Article

The reaction sequence of 3He(α,γ)7Be(α,γ)11C(p,γ)12N to CNO could be an alterative way of 3α →12C to convert 3He into CNO. It may become important in some specific environments, such as in a very massive star with low metallicity. Whether it is significant depends on the reactions involved, one of the important reactions is the 11C p-capture competing with its β+ decay. The S factor for the 11C(p,γ)12N direct capture was obtained in our previous work. This work is to update the reaction rate by adding uncertainty and fitting with the Thielemann format. With the new rate, nucleosynthesis simulations are performed to study the bridge of the p-p chains to CNO through the above sequence.