Effects of β-decays of excited-state nuclei on the astrophysical r-process

A rudimentary calculation is employed to evaluate the possible effects of β-decays of excited state nuclei on the astrophysical r-process. Single particle levels calculated with the FRDM are adapted to the calculation of β-decay rates of these excited state nuclei. Quantum numbers are determined based on proximity to Nilson model levels. The resulting rates are used in an r-process network calculation in which a supernova hot-bubble model is coupled to an extensive network calculation including all nuclei between the valley of stability and the neutron drip line and with masses 1≤A≤283. β-decay rates are included as functional forms of the environmental temperature. While the decay rate model used is simple and phenomenological, it is consistent across all 3700 nuclei involved in the r-process network calculation. This represents an approximate first estimate to gauge the possible effects of excited-state β-decays on r-process freezeout abundances.