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# Galactic evolution of Sr, Y, Zr: a multiplicity of nucleosynthetic processes.

## 1 Introduction

In order to reconstruct the solar system composition of the heavy elements beyond Fe, two major neutron capture mechanisms have been invoked since the classical work by Burbidge et al. (1957): the slow ($`s`$) process and the rapid ($`r`$) process. The $`s`$-process path requires a relatively low neutron density, $`n_n`$ $`<`$ 108 cm-3, and moves along the valley of $`\beta `$ stability. This builds up approximately half the nuclides from Fe to Bi, in particular feeding the elements Sr-Y-Zr, Ba-La-Ce-Pr-Nd, and Pb, which define the three major abundance $`s`$-peaks. The sources for the required free neutrons can be either the reaction 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg or 13C($`\alpha `$, n)16O.

Since the first phenomenological analysis, the so-called classical analysis (Clayton et al. 1961; Seeger et al. 1965), the $`s`$-process abundance distribution in the solar system has been recognized as arising from a non-unique site. At least three components have been required: the main, the weak, and the strong $`s`$-component (Clayton & Ward 1974; Käppeler et al. 1982; Käppeler, Beer, & Wisshak 1989).

The main $`s`$-component, accounting for the $`s`$-process isotopic distribution in the atomic mass number range 90 $`<`$ A $`<`$ 208, was shown to occur in low-mass ($`M`$ 4 $`M_{}`$) Asymptotic Giant Branch stars (hereafter AGB) during recurrent thermal instabilities developing above the He-burning shell (see Busso, Gallino, & Wasserburg 1999 for a review). The whole He intershell, that is the region comprised between the H-shell and the He-shell, becomes convective for a short period of time (the convective thermal pulse, hereafter TP). During the AGB phase, after the quenching of a TP, the convective envelope penetrates below the H-He discontinuity (third dredge-up episode, hereafter TDU), mixing to the surface freshly synthesized 4He, 12C and $`s`$-process elements. The maximum temperature in the deepest region of the convective TP barely reaches $`T`$ = 3 $`\times `$ 108 K; at this temperature the 22Ne neutron source is marginally activated, and the 13C source plays the major role for the main $`s`$-component. At TDU, the H-rich envelope and the He intershell coming into contact favors the penetration of a small amount of protons into the top layers of the He- and C-rich zones. At hydrogen re-ignition, protons are captured by the abundant 12C, giving rise to the formation of a so-called 13C pocket. Stellar model calculations for the AGB phases by Straniero et al. (1995, 1997) showed that all the 13C nuclei present in the 13C-pocket are consumed locally in the radiative layers of the He intershell, before a new TP develops. This provides an $`s`$-process abundance distribution that is strongly dependent on the initial metallicity (Gallino et al. 1998; Busso et al. 2001).

The weak $`s`$-component, responsible for a major contribution to the $`s`$-process nuclides up to A $``$ 90, has been recognized as the result of neutron capture synthesis in advanced evolutionary phases of massive stars. Previous studies (Lamb et al. 1977; Arnett & Thielemann 1985; Prantzos et al. 1990; Raiteri et al. 1991a; The, El Eid, & Meyer 2000) have concentrated on the reaction 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg as the major neutron source for this process. The 22Ne neutron source is activated partly in the convective core He-burning and partly in the subsequent convective C-burning shell phase (Raiteri et al. 1991b; 1993). The $`s`$-process in massive stars is metallicity dependent, since 22Ne is produced from the conversion of CNO nuclei into 14N in the H-burning shell followed by double $`\alpha `$-capture on 14N in the early phases of He burning (Prantzos et al. 1990; Raiteri et al. 1992). As we will discuss in § 5.3, additional neutron sources, partly of primary origin, may take place in the inner regions of massive stars during convective shell C-burning (Arnett & Truran 1969; Thielemann & Arnett 1985; Arnett & Thielemann 1985; Raiteri et al. 1991b) and, more importantly, during explosive nucleosynthesis in the O-rich regions (Hoffmann, Woosley, & Weaver 2001; Heger et al. 2001; Heger & Woosley 2002; Rauscher et al. 2002; Woosley, Heger, & Weaver 2002; Limongi & Chieffi 2003).

Finally, the strong $`s`$-component was introduced by Clayton & Rassbach (1967) in order to reproduce more than 50% of solar 208Pb, the most abundant Pb isotope. Recent studies by Gallino et al. (1998) and Travaglio et al. (2001a) demonstrated that the role attributed to the strong $`s`$-component is played by low-metallicity (\[Fe/H\] 111In this paper we follow the usual convention of identifying overall metallicity with the stellar \[Fe/H\] value, following the standard notation that \[X/Y\] $``$ log10(NX/NY)star – log10(NX/NY) $`<`$1.5) low mass AGB stars.

The $`r`$-process, however, takes place in an extremely neutron-rich environment in which the mean time between successive neutron captures is very short compared with the time to undergo a $`\beta `$-decay. Supernovae are currently believed to be the site of the $`r`$-process. However, there have been many attempts to define the right physical conditions for the $`r`$-process to occur (e.g., Hillebrandt 1978; Mathews & Cowan 1990; Woosley et al. 1994; Wheeler, Cowan, & Hillebrandt 1998). Three possible sites have been discussed in recent works. The first possibility relies on neutrino-powered winds of a young neutron star (Duncan, Shapiro, & Wasserman 1986; Woosley et al. 1994; Takahashi, Witti, & Janka 1994). Recently, Thompson, Burrows, & Meyer (2001) argued that it may be difficult to achieve the necessary high entropy and short timescales in the ejecta in order to reproduce the solar system $`r`$-process abundance distribution. A second possibility is related to the merging of two neutron stars in a binary system and has been examined by Freiburghaus, Rosswog, & Thielemann (1999). However, Qian (2000) argued that the predicted amount of $`r`$-process ejecta in metal-poor stars would be too high in $`r`$-elements with $`A<`$ 130 and with $`A>`$ 130 as compared with spectroscopic abundances of metal-poor stars and that the event rate would be too low. The third possibility relies upon asymmetric explosions of massive stars and jet-like outflows in the nascent neutron star (LeBlanc & Wilson 1970; Cameron 2001, 2003). Each of these proposed sites faces major problems, including reaching the required physical conditions without ad hoc assumptions to produce a satisfactory fit to the solar system $`r`$-process pattern. Hence, the stellar source for $`r`$-process abundances is still a matter of debate. Moreover, it has been suggested that at least two different supernova sources are required for the synthesis of $`r`$-process nuclei below and beyond the neutron magic number N = 82 (Wasserburg, Busso, & Gallino 1996; Sneden et al. 2000a).

Neutron-capture elements observed in Pop. II field stars are generally interpreted in an observational framework developed more than 20 years ago. Spite & Spite (1978) first demonstrated that observations of Ba (a predominantly, 80%, $`s`$-process element in solar system material) and Eu (an $`r`$-element, 95%, in the solar system) exhibit a non-solar abundance pattern in unevolved halo stars, with \[Eu/Ba\] $`>`$ 0. This was interpreted by Truran (1981) as evidence of an $`r`$-process nucleosynthesis signature at low metallicities, with little evidence for $`s`$-process contributions. Observational support for this view has grown both in large-sample surveys (e.g., Gilroy et al. 1988; McWilliam et al. 1995) and in detailed analyses of several ultra-metal-poor (\[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$2.5) $`r`$-process-rich stars (e.g., Sneden et al. 2000a; Westin et al. 2000; Hill et al. 2002). The abundances of the heavier $`n`$-capture elements (Z $``$ 56) in such stars often is an excellent match to a scaled solar-system $`r`$-process distribution (e.g., Cowan et al. 2002), but $`n`$-capture abundances of lighter elements below Ba often show significant departures from this distribution. It is not obvious how the observed abundances of the lighter $`n`$-capture elements in metal-poor stars evolve to those seen in the solar system and in Pop. I stars.

A detailed $`r`$\- and $`s`$-process decomposition can be obtained for the solar system, based on the experimental knowledge of neutron capture cross sections and on the isotopic analysis of meteoritic samples that best represent the protosolar nebula composition. Unfortunately, the solar system composition only provides a single data point in the time evolution of $`n`$-capture elements in the Galaxy. Investigations into the chemical composition of matter at different epochs can only be accomplished through high-resolution stellar spectroscopic abundance studies. Although the correlation of metallicity with time is hardly perfect, stars with sub-solar metallicities are tracers of the chemical compositions of the gas at different times of evolution of the Galaxy. Elemental $`n`$-capture abundances of field Galactic stars at different metallicities show two main characteristics: first, an average trend to lower \[X/Fe\] with decreasing \[Fe/H\]; second, a dispersion in \[X/Fe\] that increases with decreasing \[Fe/H\]. Theorists have argued that the large dispersions arise from local chemical inhomogeneities in the interstellar medium of heavy elements (in particular Ba, Eu and Sr), due to incomplete mixing of the gas in the Galactic halo (see Tsujimoto, Shigeyama, & Yoshii 1999; Ikuta & Arimoto 1999; Raiteri et al. 1999; Argast et al. 2000, 2002; Travaglio, Galli, & Burkert 2001b).

Spite & Spite (1978) were the first to find observational evidence of a trend of declining \[Ba/Fe\] and \[Y/Fe\] below \[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$2. Unfortunately their sample of 11 stars was too small to find those rarer stars with super-solar $`n`$-capture abundances, or to detect the intrinsic dispersion in these ratios. The earliest evidence for a dispersion at low metallicity came from Griffin et al. (1982), who found very strong Eu lines in the halo star HD 115444 (\[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$3), subsequently confirmed by the studies of Gilroy et al. (1988), Sneden et al. (1998) and Westin et al. (2000). Other similar well known examples are stars extremely rich in $`r`$-process elements with respect to a solar-scaled composition at the observed \[Fe/H\], like CS 22892-052 (Sneden et al. 2000a, 2003a and references therein), CS 31082-001 (Cayrel et al. 2001; Hill et al. 2002), or stars of comparable metallicity but showing a much lower $`n`$-capture element enhancement, like HD 122563 (Westin et al. 2000). Other well observed stars are BD +17 3248 (Cowan et al. 2002) and CS 22949-037 (Depagne et al. 2002). Studies by Gilroy et al. (1988), Ryan et al. (1991, 1996), Gratton & Sneden (1988, 1994), McWilliam et al. (1995), McWilliam (1998), and more recently Burris et al. (2000), Fulbright (2000) and Johnson & Bolte (2002) have found dispersions in $`n`$-capture elements/Fe ratios of more than a factor of 100 from star to star at a given metallicity.

In this paper we study the Galactic chemical evolution (hereafter GCE) of Sr, Y, and Zr. The paper is organized as follows: in § 2 we focus on the Sr-Y-Zr production by AGB stars at different metallicities. In § 3 we briefly review the GCE model adopted and our $`r`$-process assumptions. In § 4 we present our collection of spectroscopic abundances in field stars at different metallicities, updated from the recent literature. The unique compositions of some of the stars of our sample will be discussed. In § 5 we first discuss how the main $`s`$-process nucleosynthesis in AGB stars reproduces a major fraction of the solar isotopic compositions of Sr-Y-Zr by following their enrichment throughout the Galactic history. We then examine the minor role played by the weak $`s`$-process in massive stars to the solar system inventory of the first $`s`$-peak abundances. Both the main and the weak $`s`$-process do not affect the heavy element abundances of unevolved stars at low metallicities. However, we discuss the complex nature of neutron captures occurring in advanced stages of massive stars and the possibility of activation of primary neutron sources during shell C-burning or explosive nucleosynthesis in the oxygen-rich regions, not related to the classical $`s`$\- or $`r`$-process. A general comparison of our $`s`$-process predictions is then made with spectroscopic observations of Sr, Y, Zr in field stars at different metallicities. In particular, we make use of the spectroscopic observations in extremely $`r`$-process-rich and very metal-poor stars, like CS 22892-052, to infer the $`r`$-process fraction of Sr, Y, Zr that is strictly related to the main $`r`$-process feeding the heavy elements beyond Ba. We also examine very recent spectroscopic observations of heavy elements in dwarf spheroidal galaxies (Shetrone et al. 2001; Shetrone et al. 2003; Tolstoy et al. 2003), as well as in the globular cluster M15 (Sneden et al. 2000b). In particular we investigate how they compare with the Galactic trend versus metallicity. In § 6 we show how a extra primary process (not yet fully quantified from the present status of nucleosynthesis models) is needed to fully explain the solar composition of Sr-Y-Zr and in particular their Galactic trend at very low metallicities. Finally, in § 7 we summarize the main conclusions of this work and point out several areas that deserve further analysis.

## 2 Sr-Y-Zr production by AGB stars at different metallicities

We modeled the AGB nucleosynthesis, as in Straniero et al. (1997) and Gallino et al. (1998), with post-process calculations that make use of stellar evolutionary models with the FRANEC code (Frascati Raphson-Newton evolutionary code; see Chieffi & Straniero 1989). We computed stellar yields for $`s`$-process elements in AGB stars injected in the interstellar medium by mass loss winds from stars of different masses. This has been done for both Galactic halo and disk metallicities and for a wide range of 13C pocket efficiencies (see Travaglio et al. 1999, 2001a for applications of these techniques to heavier $`n`$-capture elements, with Z $``$ 56). The cumulative He intershell mass dredged up into the envelope and ejected into the interstellar medium is reported in Travaglio et al. (2001a, their Table 1).

In spite of the fact that successful models for the formation of the 13C-pocket have been advanced (Hollowell & Iben 1988; Herwig et al. 1997; Langer et al. 1999; Cristallo et al. 2001), the mass involved and the profile of the 13C-pocket must still be considered as free parameters, given the difficulty of a sophisticated treatment of the hydrodynamical behavior at the H/He discontinuity during each TDU episode. However, a series of constraints have been obtained by comparing spectroscopic abundances in $`s`$-enriched stars (MS, S, C, post-AGB, Ba and CH stars) at different metallicities with AGB model predictions (see e.g., Busso et al. 1995, 2001; Abia et al. 2001, 2002 and references therein). These authors conclude that the observations in general confirm the complex dependence of neutron captures on metallicity. The spread observed in the abundance ratio of the Ba-peak elements with respect to the lighter Zr-peak elements requires the existence of an intrinsic spread in the mass of the 13C-pocket. The same spread in the 13C concentration has been found to be appropriate to match the $`s`$-process isotopic signature of heavy elements in presolar grains condensed in circumstellar envelopes of AGB stars (see e.g., Lugaro et al. 1999, 2003 and references therein).

In our calculations, the intrinsic spread in the $`s`$-process yields at each metallicity has been modeled parametrically by varying the 13C concentration in the pocket from 0 up to a factor of 1.5$`\times `$ the ‘standard’ value of $``$4 $`\times `$ 10-6 $`M_{}`$ of 13C (Gallino et al. 1998; their ST case). Note that a maximum abundance of 13C is expected in the pocket. Indeed, too high a concentration of protons, that may diffuse into the top layers of the pocket, would activate the concurring reaction 13C(p, $`\gamma `$)14N (with 14N acting as a strong neutron poison).

We show in the upper panel of Fig. 1 the elemental production factor of Sr, Y, Zr versus \[Fe/H\] obtained for AGB stars of initial 1.5 $`M_{}`$ and different metallicities, for the ST choice of the 13C pocket. For comparison we also plot in the lower panel the elemental production factor of Ba, Hf (an element that also receives a major contribution from the $`s`$-process), and Pb. In Fig. 2 we show the isotopic production factors of Sr (86,87,88Sr, upper panel), Y (89Y, central panel), and Zr (90,91,92,94,96Zr, lower panel), versus \[Fe/H\]. Similar trends are obtained for the 3 $`M_{}`$ case. From this figure it is clear that the $`s`$-process production in AGB stars, driven by the primary 13C neutron source, gives rise to a wide spectrum of different abundance distributions that are strongly dependent on metallicity. At solar metallicity, AGB stars produce copious amounts of $`s`$-process elements belonging to the Sr-Y-Zr peak at the neutron magic number N $`=`$ 50. For decreasing \[Fe/H\], more neutron per Fe seeds are available, thus bypassing the bottleneck at N $`=`$ 50 and progressively feeding elements to the second neutron magic peak (Ba-La-Ce-Nd) at N = 82, with a maximum production yield at \[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$0.6 (see e.g., the 138Ba trend of Fig. 1, and Travaglio et al. 1999 for more details). At lower metallicities there are enough neutrons per Fe seed to produce large Pb excesses, in particular the most abundant isotope 208Pb at N $`=`$ 126 (Gallino et al. 1998; Travaglio et al. 2001a). The maximum Pb production occurs at \[Fe/H\] $`=`$ $``$1 and then decreases following the decrease of the initial Fe concentration. Note that at very low metallicities there is an important primary contribution to 22Ne. Indeed, the progressive erosion of the bottom of the envelope by the H-burning shell makes some fresh 12C, mixed with the envelope by previous TDU episodes, and converted into 14N and subsequently into 22Ne by double $`\alpha `$-capture during the early development of the next TP. The neutrons released by the 13C source in the pocket and by the 22Ne source in the TP are captured by the primary 22Ne and their progenies 25,26Mg, which act contemporaneously as neutron poisons and as seeds for the production of the heavy $`s`$-elements (see discussion in Busso et al. 1999). As a consequence, at very low metallicities the Pb yield levels off instead of further decreasing. This complex behavior of $`s`$-process production is extremely important in a GCE study.

We also considered AGB stars of intermediate mass (hereafter IMS), basing our analysis on stellar evolutionary models of 5 $`M_{}`$ and 7 $`M_{}`$, and extrapolating over the whole metallicity and mass (5 $``$ 8 $`M_{}`$) range. Travaglio et al. (1999, 2001a) discussed the role of IMS stars in Ba to Eu and Pb production, concluding that they play a minor role in their Galactic enrichment. Typically in these stars the temperature at the base of the convective envelope reaches $`T`$ = 3.5 $`\times `$ 108 K, allowing 22Ne to release neutrons efficiently via the channel 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg (Iben 1975; Truran & Iben 1977). The resulting high peak neutron density ($`n_n>`$ 1011 cm-3) gives rise to an overproduction of a few neutron-rich isotopes, such as 86Kr, 87Rb, and 96Zr, involved in branchings along the $`s`$-process path and particularly sensitive to the neutron density. The role of IMS in the light $`s`$-elements production will be discussed in § 5.

In Fig. 3 we show the production yields for 88Sr obtained for the various assumed 13C pocket efficiencies. Similar trends hold for Y and Zr isotopes. In Fig. 3, we also show with a thick line the unweighted average over this spread, the choice adopted for our GCE calculations. With the same technique Travaglio et al. (1999) studied the GCE of the elements from Ba to Eu, and Travaglio et al. (2001a) studied the role of AGB stars in the GCE of Pb and Bi. In § 3 we update the results presented in the previous papers.

## 3 Galactic evolution of Sr-Y-Zr: our ’tools’

Besides the $`s`$-process yields from AGB stars described in § 2, we need other important tools to discuss the enrichment of Sr-Y-Zr in the Galaxy. First, we outline in § 3.1 the main characteristics of the GCE model that we follow. Since no $`r`$-process yields are currently available from stellar model calculations, we have introduced them into the GCE model (§ 3.2) under the simple hypothesis of a primary production from Type II supernovae.

### 3.1 The GCE model

The GCE code for this work has been described in detail by Ferrini et al. (1992). The same model was adopted by Galli et al. (1995) and Travaglio et al. (2001c) to study the evolution of the light elements D, 3He and 7Li, and by Travaglio et al. (1999) and Travaglio et al. (2001a) to study the evolution of the heavy elements from Ba to Pb (see those papers for detailed descriptions, here we only briefly review the basic features). The Galaxy is divided into three zones: halo, thick-disk, and thin-disk, whose fraction of stars, gas (atomic and molecular) and stellar remnants, is computed as a function of time up to the present epoch. Stars are born with the same chemical composition of the gas from which they form. The thin-disk is formed from material falling in from the thick-disk and the halo. The star formation rate in the three zones is not assumed a priori, but it is obtained as the result of self-regulating processes occurring in the molecular gas phase, either spontaneous or stimulated by the presence of other stars. Stellar nucleosynthesis yields are treated according to the matrix formalism of Talbot & Arnett (1973). The halo phase lasts approximately up to \[Fe/H\] $``$1.5; the thick-disk phase covers the interval $``$2.5 $``$ \[Fe/H\] $``$1; the thin-disk phase starts at approximately \[Fe/H\] $``$1.5.

### 3.2 The $`r`$-process assumption

In halo stars the contribution of AGB stars is too low by far to account for the observed heavy element abundances. This is essentially due to the long lifetime that low mass stars spend before reaching the AGB. Moreover, as we discussed in § 2, AGB stars of halo population preferentially produce $`s`$-isotopes in the Pb peak, with marginal production of elements in the Zr and Ba $`s`$-peaks.

The almost pure $`r`$-process signature in halo stars was anticipated by Truran (1981) on theoretical arguments, and by Spite & Spite (1978) on observational grounds. For elements from Ba to Pb, our estimate of $`r`$-process contributions at $`t`$ = $`t_{}`$ has been derived by subtracting the $`s`$-fractions from the solar abundances (i.e., the $`r`$-process residuals method). The $`r`$-process contributions are treated as arising from a primary mechanism occurring in a subset of Type II SNe, i.e., those in the mass range 8 $``$ 10 $`M_{}`$ (see Wheeler, Cowan, & Hillebrandt 1998). Concerning the $`r`$-process contribution to elements lighter than barium, and in particular to strontium, yttrium and zirconium, a more complex treatment is needed, as will be discussed in § 5.

## 4 Sr-Y-Zr abundances in ‘unevolved’ stars

In order to compare our model results with observed abundance trends, we selected a sample of spectroscopic observations of Galactic field stars (mostly F and G dwarfs, and giants not obviously enriched by local $`s`$-process production events) at different metallicities, updated with the most recent data available in literature. In Fig. 4 we show the data from these surveys in the usual manner, as \[Sr/Fe\], \[Y/Fe\], and \[Zr/Fe\] values in the top, middle, and bottom panels, plotted versus \[Fe/H\]. We include results from Spite & Spite (1978); Edvardsson et al. (1993); Gratton & Sneden (1994); McWilliam et al. (1995); McWilliam (1998); Jehin et al. (1999); Tomkin & Lambert (1999); Burris et al. (2000); Fulbright (2000); Sneden et al. (2000a); Westin et al. (2000); Norris, Ryan, & Beers (2001); Mashonkina & Gehren (2001); Mishenina & Kovtyukh (2001); Hill et al. (2002); Cowan et al. (2002); Depagne et al. (2002). We have also included recent observations in dwarf spheroidal galaxies (Shetrone et al. 2001; Shetrone et al. 2003), as well as in three giants stars observed in the globular cluster M15 (Sneden et al. 2000b).

In Fig. 5 we show for comparison our collection of data for \[Ba/Fe\] (top panel), \[Eu/Fe\] (middle panel, and \[Ba/Eu\] (lower panel) versus \[Fe/H\], over-imposed with the predicted average Galactic trend for the halo, thick disk, and thin disk according to Travaglio et al. (1999). At disk metallicities the model predictions from AGB stars only are also shown for comparison.

Before applying the same GCE model to the Sr, Y and Zr data, we pause to alert the reader to some observational uncertainties and limitations. First, the spectral lines all of these elements used in analyses of metal-poor field stars have been subject to extensive laboratory analyses. Therefore, their transition probabilities have small uncertainties. Second, almost all Sr, Y, and Zr abundance results are from ionized transitions of these elements. Thus, abundance inter-comparisons among these elements, or comparisons with abundances of rare-earth elements (also derived from ionized transitions) have, in most cases, little dependence on choices of effective temperatures or gravities in the various studies included here. But each of these elements has some particular problems that should be kept in mind.

Strontium abundances are based almost exclusively on the very strong Sr II 4077, 4215 Å resonance lines. Abundances derived from these transitions are very sensitive to the choice of (in particular) the microturbulent velocity parameter, which can vary from analysis to analysis for the same star. Additionally, these lines suffer some blending from other atomic and molecular transitions, and abundance analyses really ought to be done with synthetic spectrum computations rather than with the more common single-line equivalent width computations. Fortunately in the rare spectra that have detectable (much weaker) higher-excitation Sr II lines and the Sr I 4607 Å line, the abundances derived from all Sr features are in reasonable agreement (e.g., Sneden et al. 2003a), confirming the reliability of the Sr II resonance lines, given care in their analyses.

Second, yttrium and zirconium abundances usually are derived from a few lines of the ionized species of these elements. None of these lines is usually strong enough for microturbulent velocity uncertainties to be an important source of abundance uncertainty. This comes at a price: such lines of moderate strength in stars of moderate metal-deficiency weaken to undetectable levels in the most metal-poor stars, and thus Y and Zr abundances cannot be used to constrain GCE models below \[Fe/H\] $``$ –3.

Abundances of these three elements have been reported for globular cluster giant stars. However, comparisons between field and cluster abundances should be done cautiously, because the vast majority of field star abundances are obtained from blue-UV region spectra (where the stronger lines are), while cluster star spectra abundances are based on lines in yellow-red spectral region (where the fluxes are largest in these faint stars). Unfortunately, Sr II lines are few and very weak in the yellow-red, resulting in few Sr abundance determinations in clusters. Furthermore, the results for Y and Zr are so spotty that for the present study we have chosen not to make a detailed comparison with globular clusters. Exceptions are three giant stars in M15 (see discussion below).

However, a few general remarks about heavier $`n`$-capture elemental abundances in globular clusters are appropriate here. First, note that the cluster metallicity range is \[Fe/H\] $``$ –2.4, i.e, there are no ultra-metal-poor Galactic globular clusters. In this metallicity regime the clusters have \[Eu/Fe\] $``$ +0.4 ($`\sigma `$= 0.1), mostly with little star-to-star variations within individual clusters and very small cluster-to-cluster differences (see the review of Sneden et al. 2003b, and references therein). This overall Eu enhancement is comparable to the general level in field stars of the same metallicities. Abundances of Ba and La in clusters exhibit more intra- and inter-cluster variation, with an unweighted mean value \[Ba,La/Fe\] $``$ +0.1 ($`\sigma `$= 0.2). Combining this ratio with the mean Eu abundance discussed above yields \[Eu/Ba,La\] $``$ +0.3 for almost all well-observed globular clusters. This in turn suggests strongly that the heavier $`n`$-capture elements in globular clusters have been synthesized more heavily by the $`r`$-process than by the $`s`$-process, compared with the solar system composition of these elements. Therefore, in general terms, the $`n`$-capture elements in globular clusters were formed from the same enrichment episodes as was the halo field. There are a few important exceptions to these general statements about globular cluster $`n`$-capture elements. For example, in M4, a globular cluster with metallicity \[Fe/H\] = $``$1.2, the $`s`$-process elements Ba and La are enhanced significantly beyond their nominal levels, e.g., \[Eu/Ba,La\] $``$ 0.0 (Ivans et al. 1999). This is very clear evidence for the extra presence of the products of AGB star $`s`$-process nucleosynthesis, but why this has occurred in M4 and not in most other clusters (e.g., not in the similar-metallicity cluster M5; Ivans et al. 2001) is not well understood. And in M15 (one of the most metal-poor clusters, \[Fe/H\] $``$ –2.4), a star-to-star scatter is found with a range of 0.5 dex, well beyond observational uncertainties (Sneden et al. 1997, Johnson & Bolte 2002).

Only a few stars of globular clusters have been subjected to a very detailed $`n`$-capture abundance analysis. As one example, Sneden et al. (2000b) obtained blue-region spectra of three giants in M15. Their representative points are shown in the various Figures as big open triangles. The relative $`n`$-capture abundances from this study showed good agreement with abundances of these elements in so-called $`r`$-process-rich field stars, i.e., $`<`$\[Eu/Fe\]$`>`$ $``$ +0.80 and $`<`$\[Ba/Eu\]$`>`$ $``$ –0.85. The \[Eu/Fe\] values indicate enhanced $`n`$-capture elemental abundances in these low metallicity giants, while the \[Ba/Eu\] ratios are consistent with an $`r`$-process solar system abundance value. Both sets of elemental abundance ratios in the globular giants support other studies, based upon field halo giants, that demonstrate first the early onset of the $`r`$-process in the Galaxy and second the dominance of the $`r`$-process (as opposed to the $`s`$-process) in the early Galactic synthesis of $`n`$-capture elements. Yttrium and zirconium (but not strontium) abundances were also derived in these stars, and the mean values were $`<`$\[Y/Fe\]$`>`$ $``$ –0.30 and $`<`$\[Zr/Fe\]$`>`$ $``$ +0.40. These values, being both higher and lower than solar, are suggestive of different synthesis histories for Y and Zr, at least, than for the heavier $`n`$-capture elements, i.e., Ba and Eu.

At typical Galactic disk metallicities, the largest data set for Zr and Y abundances in field stars is that of Edvardsson et al. (1993). The abundances from Gratton & Sneden (1994) and Fulbright (2000) agree well with those numbers at similar metallicities. A first look at these higher metallicity data reveals a puzzle. The average trend of \[Zr/Fe\] and \[Y/Fe\] versus \[Fe/H\] (not enough \[Sr/Fe\] data are available at high metallicity) are flat within the observational errors. However, at \[Fe/H\] $``$0.6, the ratio \[Zr/Fe\] seems to increase slightly with decreasing \[Fe/H\], while \[Y/Fe\] seems to decrease slightly with decreasing \[Fe/H\]. This might suggest differences in the synthesis of these two neighboring elements, or perhaps might be related to observational uncertainties. We will consider this point later.

We also note the abundance scatter in the Sr, Y and Zr data. Specifically, starting at \[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$1.0 with the Burris et al. (2000) data, and becoming even more obvious at halo metallicities (\[Fe/H\] $``$2), the Sr-Y-Zr abundances are characterized by a large \[Xi/Fe\] dispersion of $``$ 2 dex (e.g., McWilliam et al. 1995; Gratton & Sneden 1994; McWilliam 1998). Ultra-metal-poor stars with very large scatter of $`n`$-capture element abundances are confirmed by recent detailed studies of individual stars (e.g. CS 22892-052, Sneden et al. 2000a; HD 115444 and HD 122563, Westin et al. 2000; CS 31082-001, Hill et al. 2002). This large abundance scatter at the lowest metallicities, declining with increasing \[Fe/H\], is usually interpreted as an early unmixed Galaxy, with an inhomogeneous composition of the gas in the halo (Gilroy et al. 1988; Burris et al. 2000). This likely occurred because the timescale to homogenize the Galaxy is longer than the early evolution of the halo progenitor massive stars (see e.g., Ikuta & Arimoto 1999; Raiteri et al. 1999; Argast et al. 2000, 2002; Travaglio et al. 2001b).

In Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 we have plotted for our collected sample the ratios \[Zr/Y\], \[Sr/Y\] and \[Sr/Zr\] versus \[Fe/H\], and \[Sr,Y,Zr/Ba\] versus \[Fe/H\], respectively. From Fig. 4 it appears that Sr at low metallicities shows a much larger scatter with respect to Y and Zr. A theoretical explanation for this effect is difficult. Nevertheless, we notice that at \[Fe/H\] $`<`$3, where the largest scatter for \[Sr/Fe\] is observed, there are no data available for \[Zr/Fe\] (due to observational limits) and only few data exists for \[Y/Fe\] (see also discussion in Travaglio et al. 2001b). In stars for which at least two elements among Sr, Y, Zr have been observed (Fig. 6) the relative dispersion is smaller. Only the \[Sr/Y\] ratio (Fig. 6, middle panel) apparently shows a larger dispersion at \[Fe/H\] $``$ $``$3, in particular due to two major outliers, HD 200654 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$2.82, \[Sr/Y\] = $``$1.02, McWilliam et al. 1995, 1998) and CS22877-011 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$2.92, \[Sr/Y\] = $``$1.55, McWilliam et al. 1995, 1998). A relatively high \[Y/Fe\] in both stars seems to be the cause. This is also evident in Fig. 7 (middle panel) in the plot \[Y/Ba\] versus \[Fe/H\]. From the theoretical point of view, the large scatter of Sr in very metal-poor stars may be naturally related to the different explosive properties of stars of different mass and to the consequent different pollution of the local interstellar medium. We recall that the $`n`$-component operating at very low metallicities is mainly due to explosive nucleosynthesis. Similar characteristics should also affect the $`n`$-component of Y and Zr. To determine the possibility of an intrinsic scatter in the relative ratios Sr/Y/Zr, will require further theoretical study and more observational data.

In Fig. 6 the representative points of the two selected very $`r`$-process-rich stars do not show any appreciable difference with respect to other halo stars in the sample. On the contrary, in Fig. 7 the representative points of the two stars are situated at the lower end of the abundance ratio spread, indicating the extremely high $`r`$-process Ba content. As will be discussed in § 5, the interpretation of these ratios contains key information about the stellar origin of these elements.

Some of the stars shown in Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 appear to deviate from the mean trends enough to warrant further individual attention. Some of these stars are like the F-star HR 107 (Edvardsson et al. 1993), which probably is a so-called barium dwarf that has been polluted by mass transfer from a former AGB companion. In this case HR 107 should be taken out of our sample of field stars. Another special star is HD 14095 (\[Fe/H\] $`=`$ $``$0.74, Fulbright 2000); it has a particularly high Zr overabundance, \[Zr/Fe\] = +0.58, but a solar Y abundance, \[Y/Fe\] = +0.04. But Fulbright (private communication) emphasizes that the Y and Zr abundances for this star are based on very weak lines and should be viewed with caution. The low metallicity giant HD 110184 (\[Fe/H\] $`=`$ $``$2.56, Burris et al. 2000), also shows high \[Y/Fe\] and \[Zr/Fe\] abundances, leading to a suspicion of AGB contamination. In fact the \[Ba/Eu\] value given by Burris et al. (2000) is $`+`$0.31, much higher than the typical value for this ratio at such metallicity, ordinarily explained by the $`r`$-process. The same caution holds for HD 105546 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$1.27, Burris et al. 2000), BD +541323 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$1.65, Burris et al. 2000), and for BD +173248 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$2.02, Burris et al. 2000). These stars have high \[Sr/Fe\] (+0.45, +0.57, +0.55, respectively), but also high \[Ba/Eu\] ratios (+0.10, $``$0.10, +0.01, respectively). We also put a warning on BD $``$12582 and BD +42466 (with \[Fe/H\] = $``$2.25 and \[Fe/H\] = $``$2.00, respectively, Burris et al. 2000). They show a very high \[Ba/Fe\] ratio(+1.50 and +1.60, respectively), but no other measurements of heavy elements are available (such a high \[Ba/Fe\] abundance suggests AGB contamination). Finally, we note two dSph stars, Fornax-21 (\[Fe/H\] = $``$0.67, Shetrone et al. 2003), and Ursa Minor-K (\[Fe/H\] = $``$2.17, Shetrone et al. 2001). In both cases their high \[Ba/Eu\] ratios (\[Ba/Eu\] = +0.32 and +0.33, respectively) indicate an AGB origin.

## 5 Galactic evolution of Sr-Y-Zr: results

In this Section we first discuss the results of the Galactic evolution of Sr, Y, Zr, obtained using the $`s`$-process yields of AGB stars with the unweighted average over the large spread in the 13C-pocket efficiencies assumed (see Fig. 3 and the discussion in § 2). An analysis of the properties of the weak $`s`$-component is then afforded, as it occurs in massive stars in a delicate balance between various nucleosynthetic sources. The weak $`s`$-component contributes a small fraction to solar Sr, and marginally to solar Y and Zr. No weak $`s`$-contribution is expected in halo stars, because of the strong decrease in its efficiency with decreasing metallicity by the effect of the secondary-like nature of the major neutron source in massive stars, 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg, and to the strong neutron poison effect of primary isotopes, like 16O, with large abundances. We then deduce the $`r`$-process isotopic fractions at the epoch of the solar system formation, which enables us to follow separately how the $`s`$\- and $`r`$-process evolve in the Galaxy. From the analysis of the chemical composition of peculiar very metal-poor and very $`r`$-process-rich stars we quantify the primary $`r`$-process contribution to Sr, Y and Zr that accompanies the production of the $`r`$-process characterizing the heavy elements beyond Ba. This small contribution is expected to decrease at very low metallicity, following the generally observed abundance decrease of the heavy neutron capture elements. The residual fraction of solar Sr, Y and Zr is of primary nature and is likely produced by all massive stars; it is not strictly related to the classical $`r`$-process nor to the weak $`s`$-process.

### 5.1 $`s`$-Process contribution by AGB stars at solar system formation

As shown in previous works on this topic (e.g., Gallino et al. 1998; Busso et al. 1999; Travaglio et al. 1999; Travaglio et al. 2001a), the main $`s`$-process component is clearly not the result of a ‘unique’ astrophysical process. Instead, it results from the integrated chemical evolution of the Galaxy, mixing into the interstellar medium the output of many different generations of AGB stars, whose yields change with the initial metallicity, stellar mass, 13C-pocket efficiency and other physical properties. This changes the traditional interpretation of the various $`s`$-process components. For example, Travaglio et al. (2001a) showed, in the context of the same GCE model adopted here, that at low metallicities Pb (in particular 208Pb) becomes the dominant product of low-mass AGB nucleosynthesis, offering a natural explanation for the strong $`s`$-component.

The solar abundances of Sr, Y and Zr from Anders & Grevesse (1989) are listed in Table 1 (column 2) together with their uncertainties (1$`\sigma `$, column 3). The resulting Galactic $`s`$-fractions from AGB stars at the epoch of the solar system formation are listed in column 5. They were obtained taking into account the sum of LMS and IMS yields. As one can see from this Table, the contributions from IMS alone (column 4) are, in some cases, not negligible. In particular 96Zr, an isotope originally considered of $`r`$-process origin (see e.g., Cameron 1973; Käppeler et al. 1989), receives a substantial $`s`$-process contribution through the neutron capture channel at 95Zr if $`n_n`$ $``$ 3 $`\times `$ 108 cm-3. For a discussion of the branching effect at 95Zr, see Käppeler et al. (1990). While IMS do not dominate the present population of AGB stars, they are nevertheless effective in contributing $``$10% of solar Sr, Y, Zr, with a much smaller contribution to heavier elements up to Xe, complementing the nucleosynthesis of LMS.

In Table 1 our corresponding $`s`$-process expectations for Nb and Mo are also added. The isotope 93Nb is bypassed during the $`s`$-fluence, but its $`s`$-process contribution results totally from the radiogenic decay of 93Zr. Consequently, the two elements Zr and Nb share the same origin – the $`s`$-process contributes approximately the same amount to the solar abundances of each element. Finally, Molybdenum also might be included in the Sr-Y-Zr-Nb $`s`$-peak, because of its substantial $`s`$-process fraction (38% of solar Mo). For this reason, we have tentatively included Mo in Table 1. In the list of isotopes reported in Table 1 we excluded the p-only isotopes 84Sr and 92,94Mo, which are bypassed by the $`s`$-process. Note that for Mo this corresponds to a contribution of 14% to the solar value. We also excluded the $`r`$-only 100Mo. We note that 86,87Sr and 96Mo are $`s`$-only isotopes and from our total $`s`$-process (main+weak) predictions for the solar composition (Table 1, column 7), we obtain total contributions of 76%, 70%, and 80%, respectively. Therefore, an additional contribution from a slow neutron-capture process is needed to reproduce their solar composition.

The uncertainties in the $`s`$-fractions depend on the prescriptions for AGB yields and the GCE model, as well as on the uncertainty of neutron capture cross sections and solar abundances. As for the experimental neutron capture cross sections, those for the Sr isotopes and for 89Y are fairly well known, at a 5% level or less (Bao et al. 2000; Koehler et al. 2000). A similar precision has been achieved for 94,96Zr by Toukan & Käppeler (1990), whereas for 90,91,92,93Zr a higher uncertainty of about 10% is reported in the recent compilation of cross sections by Bao et al. (2000). These latter cross sections are based upon the older measurements of Boldeman et al. (1976). A further uncertainty affects the 96Zr $`s`$-process contribution, which is fed by the neutron channel at 95Zr, whose neutron capture cross section is based on theoretical estimates only. A reliable determination of these cross sections with improved measurements is highly desirable. In column 6 we report the contributions to these isotopes from the weak $`s`$-component, according to the analysis of Raiteri et al. (1993; see discussion in § 5.2). Finally, in column 7 we report the total $`s`$-process contributions from AGBs and from the weak $`s`$-component in massive stars.

In the second column of Table 2 we report the updated predictions from the classical analysis (Arlandini et al. 1999: ‘classical”). In column 3 we report the $`s`$-process predictions for the best fit to the main $`s`$-component (indicated as ‘stellar model’ in Arlandini et al. 1999). Those authors obtained this result with AGB models with masses from 1.5 to 3 $`M_{}`$ , a metallicity of \[Fe/H\] $`=`$ $``$0.3 and with the ST choice for the 13C-pocket. A comparison with the results shown in Table 2 makes clear that, even using the same updated neutron capture network, the classical analysis does not allow any $`r`$-process residuals for Y (at odds with spectroscopic observations of low metallicity stars). For the light $`s`$-elements, both the ’classical analysis’ and the ’stellar model’ by Arlandini et al. (1999) give different prescriptions with respect to the ones obtained by integrating AGB $`s`$-yields over metallicity in the framework of the GCE model.

In Table 3 we report our GCE predictions for all elements from Co up to Mo, taking into account the weak $`s`$-process from Raiteri et al. (1992) (column 2), our LMS and IMS predictions separately (columns 3 and 4), and the total predictions from AGB stars (column 5). Finally, our predictions for the total $`s`$-process (IMS + LMS + weak-$`s`$ component) fractions of solar abundances are reported in column 6. From Table 3 we see that solar Kr and Rb have an $`s`$-fraction of $``$50%. Those two elements belong to the first $`s`$-peak at N = 50. Also solar gallium and germanium have a contribution from the $`s`$-process of $``$50%, while for selenium the $`s`$-process is responsible for $``$40%. The major $`s`$-component that contributes to the solar abundance of these three elements comes from the metallicity-dependent weak $`s`$-process. We also notice that among the two easily observable and nearby elements copper and nickel, only copper is affected by the $`s`$-process at $``$30%. This is mostly due to the weak $`s`$-process in massive stars. Nickel is almost unaffected by the $`s`$-process (see Raiteri et al. 1992; Matteucci et al. 1993; Mishenina et al. 2002; Simmerer et al. 2003).

In Fig. 8 we show (full dots) the Galactic chemical contribution at the epoch of the solar system formation of elements in the atomic number range Z = 6 to Z = 82, taking into account AGBs of low and intermediate mass. For the light elements below Fe, there is a small $`s`$-process AGB contribution to P (2.1%) and Sc (1.6%). Also AGBs make large contributions to the isotopes 12C (29% solar) and 22Ne (44% solar) leading to total element fractions of 29% for solar carbon and 3.5% for solar neon (Arnone et al. 2003). As to nitrogen, we only considered the yields during the advanced TP-AGB phase when the star suffers thermal pulses and third dredge up episodes. Here, all the 14N nuclei produced in the H-burning shell by the full operation of the HCNO cycle are subsequently converted by double $`\alpha `$ capture into 22Ne. However, a major contribution to solar N comes from LMS in the Red Giant phase due to the first dredge up. During this phase, material of the inner radiative zones is mixed with the surface by the extension of the convective envelope, and proton captures convert about 1/3 of the initial 12C into 14N. Further substantial contribution from the nitrogen content in the Galaxy derives from the operation of the so-called ‘cool bottom process’ in low-mass AGBs, and of the ‘hot bottom process’ in intermediate mass stars (see discussion in Busso et al. 1999 and references therein). Both contributions have not been considered here.

For elements beyond Fe and up to Zn, AGBs make minor $`s`$-process contributions to Co (2.7%), Cu (5.2%) and Zn (2.6%). For comparison we also show, for elements from Sr up to Bi, the $`s`$-process predictions for the best-fit to the main $`s`$-component from Arlandini et al. (1999): from the ‘stellar model’ (open squares; also Table 2, this work) and the updated predictions by the classical analysis (Arlandini et al. 1999: ‘classical analysis’; also Table 2, this work). It is clear from this figure that in the Ba–Eu region, and up to Tl, the GCE model agrees quite well with the Arlandini et al. (1999) ‘stellar model’. This is mainly due to the fact that the metallicity region around \[Fe/H\] = $``$0.3, corresponding to the stellar models adopted by Arlandini et al. (1999), is also the metallicity where the higher AGB production of elements between Ba–Eu and up to Tl occurs (Travaglio et al. 1999). The discrepancy between the predictions for Pb and Bi (see Travaglio et al. 2001a for a detailed discussion) from the ‘classical analysis’ and from the ‘stellar model’ is a clear indication that neither a unique AGB nor the classical analysis is able to explain the main $`s`$-component in the solar system. As a matter of fact, the main $`s`$-component is the outcome of different generations of AGB stars prior to the solar system formation.

### 5.2 The weak $`s`$-process and its contribution to solar Sr, Y, Zr

Neutron capture processes in massive stars at different metallicities play a role in the Galactic production of Sr, Y, and Zr. We intend to discuss in this Section some relevant points of this problem.

As we already noted in § 1, the reaction 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg represents the major neutron source for the weak $`s`$-process in massive stars. It takes place partly in the final phases of core He-burning (near He exhaustion) when the central temperature rises up to 3.5 $`\times `$ 108 K, and partly in the subsequent convective C-burning shell at a much higher temperature (around 1 $`\times `$ 109 K). There, a copious release of $`\alpha `$ particles comes out from the major reaction channel 12C + 12C $``$ 20Ne + $`\alpha `$. Consequently, this $`s`$-process production has a complex dependence on the initial mass. Indeed, during core He burning, 22Ne is less consumed in the less massive stars, and thus a major fraction is available for the subsequent convective shell C-burning phase. In the more massive stars, almost all 22Ne has been consumed already by core He exhaustion, and a saturation in the neutron exposure is reached (Prantzos et al. 1990). During convective core He burning, the neutron density barely reaches 1 $`\times `$ 106 cm-3. In contrast at the beginning of convective shell C-burning the neutron density shows a sharp exponential decline from an initial very high value, of $``$1 $`\times `$ 1011 cm-3 (Arnett & Truran 1969; Raiteri et al. 1991b, 1993), due to the early release of $`\alpha `$ particles.

Previous analyses of the weak $`s`$-component (e.g., Couch, Schmiedekamp, & Arnett 1974; Lamb et al. 1977; Prantzos et al. 1990; Raiteri et al. 1991a, 1992, 1993) provided a decreasing $`s`$-process contribution from massive stars with increasing atomic number, on the order of 70% for the $`s`$-only 70Ge and of 30% for the $`s`$-only 76Se. As for Kr, the extreme temperature dependence of the mean-life of 79Se favors the production of the $`s`$-only 80Kr (this isotope is mostly produced, by 80%, in massive stars). Also the $`s`$-only 82Kr receives an important contribution (50%) from the weak $`s`$-component. Concerning the Sr isotopes, the branching effect at 85Kr favors the $`s`$-only 86Sr and 87Sr, whose solar abundances are produced by about 20% from the weak $`s`$-process. The low overall neutron exposure almost stops the $`s`$ fluence at the neutron magic 88Sr. This isotope receives only a $``$5% contribution from the weak $`s`$-process. From 89Y on, the weak $`s`$-process contribution is marginal.

It should be clear from the previous considerations that the classical analysis of the weak $`s`$-process, which typically requires a constant temperature and constant neutron density and an unknown distribution of neutron exposures, is not suitable at all in approximating the weak $`s`$-process occurring in massive stars.

In massive stars a general note of caution needs to be addressed to the sensitivity of the predicted abundances of nuclei at neutron magic N = 50 and on the uncertainty in the cross section of several lighter isotopes for which only theoretical estimates are given, including 62Ni, 72,73Ge and 77,78Se. Moreover, many cross sections of stable isotopes from Fe to Sr still have uncertainties of at least 10%. Also the temperature dependence of the cross section of several isotopes shows strong departures from the usual $`1/v`$ law, among them 56Fe, 61Ni, 63Cu, 67Zn, 71Ga, 73Ge, 75As, and all the Kr isotopes.

Finally, several primary light isotopes act as major neutron absorbers at low metallicity. Their cross sections often show large departures from the $`1/v`$ law and, therefore, need to be carefully evaluated. Among them are 12C, 16O, 20Ne and all Si isotopes (see Bao et al. 2000). Of particular importance for the $`s`$-process efficiency is 16O, for which Igashira et al. (1995) measured a neutron capture cross section that turned out to be 170$`\times `$ higher than previous theoretical estimates by Allen & Macklin (1971). As a matter of fact, even employing the much lower value from Allen & Macklin (1971), the neutron capture on 16O in massive stars was found to strongly depress the weak $`s`$-process at low metallicity (Raiteri et al. 1992). The effect may be moderated by the partial recycling effect of the chain 16O(n, $`\gamma `$)17O($`\alpha `$, n)20Ne (Travaglio et al. 1996). Recently, Woosley et al. (2003) noted the importance of including the effect of neutron poisoning from 16O in core collapse supernovae of solar metallicity.

Besides all of the above intricacies, a major impact is played by the need for a careful knowledge of key reaction rates, like 22Ne($`\alpha `$, n)25Mg and 22Ne($`\alpha `$$`\gamma `$)26Mg (Käppeler et al. 1994; see Rauscher et al. 2002; Woosley et al. 2003). One has finally to recall the critical effect on the advanced phases of stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis that results from the choice for the important, but uncertain, 12C($`\alpha `$$`\gamma `$)16O reaction rate (see Rauscher et al. 2002 for a recent discussion). Other difficulties are related to a realistic treatment of convective-radiative borders, of the time-dependent mixing and nucleosynthesis processes, of the inclusion of rotation and mass loss, as well as on hydrodynamic multi-dimensional effects.

In spite of the above mentioned problems affecting neutron capture nucleosynthesis in massive stars and the nucleosynthetic origin of the $`r`$-process, a general conclusion may be drawn. Due to the metallicity dependence of the major neutron source, 22Ne, no contribution from the weak $`s`$-process is to be expected in halo stars. Some extra contribution is however to be expected from primary neutron sources in massive stars, whose quantitative impact is difficult to determine at present.

### 5.3 Primary neutron capture sources in massive stars not related to the classical $`r`$-process

In the more advanced evolutionary stages of massive stars there are a few primary neutron sources that may be activated, among which is the possible contribution during carbon burning of the sub-threshold channel 12C + 12C $``$ 23Mg + n (Caughlan & Fowler 1988). Another important source of neutrons during C-burning is the reaction 26Mg($`\alpha `$, n)29Si, where 26Mg is partly of primary origin from the chain 12C + 12C$``$ 23Na + p followed by 23Na($`\alpha `$, p)26Mg. In the subsequent hydrostatic O-burning phase, which takes place at around 2 $`\times `$ 109 K, an intense primary neutron production is released by the reaction channel 16O + 16O $``$ 31S + n. Explosive nucleosynthesis governs the yields of the ejecta of the Si-rich zone and of the inner region of the O-rich zone, where photodisintegration processes on heavy isotopes play a consistent role on dynamical time scales. In the post-explosive nucleosynthesis yields of massive stars with solar composition (Rauscher et al. 2002), with an expected sharp decline for nuclides beyond the neutron magic N = 50, there are comparable amounts of $`r`$-only and $`s`$-only isotopes, 70Zn and 70Ge, 76Ge and 76Se, 80Se and 80Kr, 82Se and 82Kr, 86Sr and 86Kr, which is impossible to explain either by the weak $`s`$-process, or by a pure $`r`$-process mechanism.

These first detailed results for the build-up of heavy elements with a full reaction network in core collapse supernovae are reminiscent of the older numerical simulations aimed at characterizing the astrophysical site for the nucleosynthesis of the $`r`$-process. For example, simulations of neutron captures occurring after the passage of a shock front at explosive He-shell conditions ($`\rho `$ $``$ 105 g cm-3, 0.9 $`\times `$ 109 K $`T2\times 10^9`$ K) were able to reproduce only the $`r`$-process peak at A $`=`$ 80 (Hillebrandt, Takahashi, & Kodama 1976; Hillebrandt, & Thielemann 1977; Truran, Cowan, & Cameron 1978; Cowan, Cameron, & Truran 1985). That result was considered a failure in the quest for a common astrophysical site for reproducing the whole $`r`$-process distribution in the solar system, from A $``$ 80 up to the transuranics. Nevertheless, the growth of spectroscopic data now available suggests that neither the $`s`$-process, nor the $`r`$-process in nature are the result of unique nucleosynthesis processes.

### 5.4 The $`r`$-process contribution to Sr, Y, Zr as deduced from very metal-poor and very $`r`$-process-rich stars

As briefly described in § 3.2, our estimate of $`r`$-process abundances for the elements from Ba to Pb at $`t=t_{}`$ has been derived using the $`r`$-process residuals method. If we would apply the same method to Sr-Y-Zr, we would obtain an $`r`$-process contribution of $``$20–30% to the solar composition (see Table 3). Nevertheless, the more complex nucleosynthetic origin of the Sr-Y-Zr elements with respect to the Ba-Eu elements is suggested by $`r`$-process-rich and very low metallicity stars, such as CS 22892-052. Since this star has an $`r`$-process enrichment of $``$40$`\times `$ the solar-scaled composition (see Fig. 5 \[Eu/Fe\] versus \[Fe/H\], middle panel), we can ascribe the signature of CS 22892-052 to the ‘pure’ $`r`$-process (i.e., any contamination by other possible stellar sources is hidden by the $`r`$-process abundances). A very similar trend in both Sr-Y-Zr and in the heavy elements beyond Ba is shown by another very $`r`$-process-rich star of nearly the same metallicity, e.g., CS 31081-001. Both CS 22892-052 and CS 31081-001 are highlighted as bold symbols in the various Figures. In particular, these two stars show the highest \[Sr/Fe\], \[Y/Fe\], and \[Zr/Fe\] ratios among stars of comparable metallicity (see Fig. 4). The other special stars indicated as open circles, for which accurate spectroscopic abundances of many neutron-capture elements are available, do not show such an extreme $`r`$-process-rich signature. For them, both Sr, Y and Zr, or Ba, Eu cannot be distinguished from the averages of other stars of comparable metallicity.

Under the above assumption, and knowing that the Ba $`r`$-fraction at the epoch of the solar system formation is $``$20% (Travaglio et al. 1999; Arlandini et al. 1999), from CS 22892-052 one can derive the $`r`$-fraction for Sr-Y-Zr of $``$10% (and not $``$25–30% as derived from the $`r`$-residuals method). Note that the same result can be obtained employing Eu instead of Ba. In addition, as noted above, we know that the $`s`$-process contributes 80%, 74%, and 67% to solar Sr, Y and Zr, respectively (see Table 4, second column).

After summing up all these contributions we find that fractions of 8%, 18%, and 18% of solar Sr, Y, and Zr, respectively, are “missed”. We then assume that this missing fraction is of ‘primary’ origin and results from all massive stars. We note that at this time it is not possible to completely define this additional nucleosynthetic contribution to Sr, Y and Zr. In the advanced stages of evolution in massive stars, and in particular during explosive oxygen burning, a number of ‘primary’ neutron sources can be activated. The situation is complicated, however, and neutron production might also be accompanied by photodisintegrations, as well as by proton and alpha captures. It appears that this nucleosynthesis is only contributing to the production of the lighter $`n`$-capture elements (Sr-Zr) – although the production of all elements from Cu to Zr could be affected – and this is of a ‘primary’ nature. For ease of discussion we would label this additional nucleosynthesis as a lighter element primary process (LEPP). We emphasize further that detailed (full network) supernova model calculations, for stars of low metallicity (as opposed to solar-metallicity models) are not yet available but will be required to better understand this nucleosynthesis. Additional observational data, particularly for Sr-Y-Zr in low metallicity stars, will also help to constrain theoretical models and better define the nature of lighter $`n`$-capture element synthesis in low-metallicity stars. The fractional contributions to Sr-Y-Zr from this LEPP are reported in the last column of Table 4. In Table 4 (column 3) we also report for comparison purposes the $`r`$-fraction obtained with the $`r`$-residuals method. In the case of Nb, since its abundance results from the radiogenic decay of 93Zr, we have adopted the same contribution estimated for Zr. Therefore, knowing its total $`s`$-process contribution to solar Nb, we have deduced the $`r`$-fraction without relying on the still uncertain observed value of \[Nb/Fe\]. We also warn the reader on the Mo $`r`$-fraction derived from the same star, due to difficulties in detecting Mo in low-metallicity stars (see discussion in Sneden et al. 2003a, where the error bar for the Mo abundance in CS 22892-052 has been estimated to be $``$0.2 dex).

In Table 5 we derive from CS 22892-052 the $`r`$-fraction of elements from Ru to Cd strictly based on the production of the heavy $`r`$-elements beyond Ba. In the case of Ru a $`p`$-process contribution (to 96Ru and 98Ru) has been taken into account, affecting the solar Ru by $``$7%. These elements are not the subject of this work, and therefore we will not enter into a detailed discussion here. Since Cd in the CS 22892-052 is an upper limit we report in parenthesis the $`r`$-fraction derived for that element in this star.

The discrepancy in the $`r`$-fraction of Sr-Y-Zr between the $`r`$-residuals method and the CS22892-052 abundances becomes even larger for elements from Ru to Cd – the weak $`s`$-process does not contribute to elements from Ru to Cd. As noted in the Introduction, this discrepancy suggests an even more complex multisource nucleosynthetic origin for elements like Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, and Cd.

In Fig. 9 the $`n`$-capture abundance pattern observed in the ultra-metal-poor star CS 22892-052 is compared with the $`r`$-process abundance curve obtained by computing the Galactic chemical evolution of $`s`$-process nucleosynthesis from AGB stars, and using the $`r`$-process residuals method to infer the $`r`$-process fractions. Exceptions are the $`r`$-process contributions to Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, and Mo, for which we derived the $`r`$-process fraction from CS 22892-052. The values plotted in Fig. 9 correspond to the ones reported in Table 4, column 4. Even when we derived the $`r`$-fraction for Sr, Y, Zr, Nb and Mo from the CS 22892-052, small differences between our theoretical prediction and the observational data are still visible. This is due to observational uncertainties affecting the data (e.g., deriving the $`r`$-fraction using Eu instead of Ba will results in differences up to 5% for the elements from Sr to Mo).

Spectroscopic data of the elemental abundances in CS 22892-052 (Sneden et al. 2003a) plotted in Fig. 9 are the result of an average between ground-based observations and HST observations (with the exception of Pb). For Pb both ground-based data as well as HST data have been plotted. For Au no ground-based data are available, therefore only HST data have been plotted. Except for Pb, all HST data (Ge, Y, Os, Pt, Au, Pb) seem to be consistent with the ground-based data. Concerning Pb, the uncertainties are still significant even in the ground-based data, as Sneden et al. (2003a) commented in their work ” … we are not confident of the suggested detections of two Pb I lines in the ground-based spectra.” We note that for Nb and Mo the observational error bars plotted are ‘adopted error bars’ (see Sneden et al. 2003a for discussion). We also added error bars to our theoretical GCE predictions. They are based, for each isotope, on uncertainties in the solar system elemental abundances (Anders & Grevesse 1989), and on the uncertainties in neutron capture cross sections (Bao et al. 2000). These error bars are important for elements belonging to the three $`s`$-peaks, and in particular for Pb. In the case of La, we have adopted a conservative 2$`\sigma `$ uncertainty, since discrepant experimental determinations of the neutron cross section are reported in the compilation of Bao et al. (2000).

## 6 Reconstruction of the Galactic evolution of Sr, Y, Zr, by diverse neutron capture mechanisms

In Fig. 10, we show the Galactic evolutionary trends predicted by our model for \[Sr/Fe\], \[Y/Fe\], \[Zr/Fe\] versus \[Fe/H\]. These predictions take into account the $`s`$-process, the $`r`$-process and the primary process (or LEPP), in the halo, thick-disk and thin-disk. In Fig. 10 also the GCE model predictions for the $`s`$-process contribution by AGB stars alone are reported. For Galactic disk metallicities, in the predicted total ($`s`$ \+ $`r`$ \+ $`primary`$) average trend one can distinguish the effect of the late AGB contribution, and also a tiny difference in the relative behavior of Sr, Y and Zr at \[Fe/H\] $`>`$ $``$0.3. It is tempting to interpret in this manner the different trends observed in \[Zr/Fe\] and \[Y/Fe\] in disk metallicity stars as described in the Introduction. However, a more detailed analysis would be needed when comparing results of different authors in order to distinguish intrinsic abundance variations from observational uncertainties.

In Fig. 11 we show the predicted trends for \[Sr/Y\], \[Sr/Zr\] and \[Y/Zr\] versus \[Fe/H\], and in Fig. 12 the predicted trends for \[Sr/Ba\], \[Y/Ba\], \[Zr/Ba\] versus \[Fe/H\]. In particular, we focus on the ratio of Sr, Y, Zr over Ba for the following reason. Ba, as discussed previously, at low metallicity is mainly produced by $`r`$-process nucleosynthesis. If Ba and Sr-Y-Zr would derive from the same stellar source at such low metallicities, we would expect to see a fairly flat ratio vs. \[Fe/H\] (within observational error bars), as in the case of \[Ba/Eu\] (see Travaglio et al. 1999 for further discussion). This does not seem to be the case for Sr-Y-Zr, suggesting a different stellar origin for Sr-Y-Zr and Ba.

At very low metallicity the increasing \[Sr,Y,Zr/Ba\] ratio with decreasing \[Fe/H\] is correlated with the delayed production of Ba with respect to Sr-Y-Zr. This assumes that at low metallicity Ba is produced in type II Supernovae in the mass range 8 $``$ 10 $`M_{}`$, while Sr-Y-Zr derive their $`n`$-component from all massive stars. The $`r`$-fraction alone is shown in Fig. 12 as a flat line in the three panels, which is consistent with the values for the two extremely $`r`$-process-rich stars CS 22892-052 and CS 31082-001.

There have been recent observations of $`n`$-capture elements in nearby dwarf spheroidal galaxies (Shetrone et al. 2001, 2003). Abundance comparisons in these galaxies, as a function of metallicity, demonstrate similar patterns to those observed in the Galaxy. From the Shetrone et al. data for Ba and Eu (our Fig. 5) we note that the abundance scatter present in \[Ba/Fe\] and \[Eu/Fe\] for \[Fe/H\] $`<`$ $``$1.5 disappears at increasing metallicities, in a manner similar to the Galactic sample. Such an agreement among these various galaxies suggests a common synthesis history for these elements as a function of iron production. Nevertheless, the \[Y/Fe\] in dwarf galaxies stars with $``$2 $`<`$ \[Fe/H\] $`<`$ $``$1 seems on average lower than what is observed in the Galaxy (Fig. 4 and Fig. 10). The same is true for the ratio \[Y/Ba\] (Fig. 7 and Fig. 12). Of course the stellar sample in dwarf galaxies is still too low to draw any final conclusions. Moreover, no data for Sr and Zr are available, and different star formation histories for each dwarf galaxy should be carefully taken into account (Tolstoy et al. 2003). In spite of these intricacies, one possible explanation for the observed lower \[Y/Fe\] and \[Y/Ba\] ratios in dSph galaxies is that less ejecta from massive stars are retained in the local interstellar medium, consequently reducing the contribution to Y from a primary process (see discussion in this paper). Summing up, an increase in the small number statistics of stars observed in dSph galaxies, as well as additional data for Sr and Zr in dSph stars, will allow us to better understand the nucleosynthesis history in these galaxies.

## 7 Conclusions

In this paper we have calculated the evolution of the light $`n`$-capture elements, Sr, Y, and Zr. The input stellar yields for these nuclei have been separated into their $`s`$-, $`r`$-, and primary-process components. The $`s`$-yields are the result of post-process nucleosynthesis calculations based on full evolutionary AGB models computed with the FRANEC code. Spectroscopic observations of very low-metallicity stars in the Galaxy, as well as the first observations of single stars in dwarf spheroidal galaxies, suggest that an extra source (of primary nature) is needed to synthesize Sr, Y, and Zr, to enrich the early interstellar medium, and to reproduce the solar composition of $`s`$-only isotopes like 86,87Sr, 96Mo. We therefore think that neutrons should give the major imprint to this primary process, that has to be considered different from the ‘classical $`s`$’ and the ‘classical $`r`$’ processes. The results of the Galactic evolution model confirm these observational indications.

We compared our theoretical predictions with the abundance pattern observed in the very $`r`$-process-rich CS 22892-052 (Sneden et al. 2003a). This star is known to show a pure $`r`$-process signature (it shows a $`r`$-process enhancement of about 40$`\times `$ the solar value, much larger than any abundance observed in normal halo stars). We extracted from this star the $`r`$-fraction of Sr, Y, and Zr ($``$10% of the solar value). In the light of our nucleosynthesis calculations in AGB stars at different metallicities, integrated over the GCE model briefly described in this paper, we conclude that the $`s`$-process from AGB stars contributes to the solar abundances of Sr, Y and Zr by 71%, 69% and 65%, respectively. To the solar Sr abundance, we also added a small contribution ($``$10%) from the ‘secondary’ weak $`s`$-component from massive stars.

As a consequence of the above results, we conclude that a primary component from massive stars is needed to explain 8% of the solar abundance of Sr, and 18% of solar Y and Zr. Although this contribution to the solar composition is small, especially in terms of the overall uncertainties, it nevertheless appears to be necessary to produce the observed enrichment of these elements in the very low-metallicity stars. This process is of primary nature, unrelated to the classical metallicity-dependent weak $`s`$-component, and might be thought of as a lighter element primary process (or LEPP). We stress that the details of this nucleosynthesis are still not well understood, and charged-particle reactions and photodisintegrations may contribute along with neutron production. Further, the same process to which the light neutron-capture elements Sr, Y and Zr are sensitive, also likely affects the production of all elements from Cu to Sr. To understand in detail the complicated Galactic nucleosynthesis history of Sr, Y and Zr (as well as other lighter element) formation will require new theoretical studies and additional high-quality spectroscopic observational data, particularly of low-metallicity halo stars.

C.T. thanks the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and the Programme for Investment in the Future (ZIP) of the German Government for their financial support. R.G. thanks Max-Planck-Institut für Cosmochemie (Mainz) for the kind hospitality during the development of this work. We thank the anonymous referee for helpful suggestions that have improved the paper. Research partly supported by the MIUR-FIRB Project ‘The astrophysical origin of heavy elements beyond Fe’ (CT, RG) and by NSF grants AST-9986974 and AST-0307279 (JJC), AST-9987162 and AST-0307495 (CS).


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# Magnetorotational mechanism of supernova type II exlosion

## 1 Magnetorotational mechanism

The magnotorotational supernova (MRS) explosion model was suggested in bk70 . The idea of MRS consists of getting explosion energy from the rotational (gravitational) energy of the collapsed magnetized massive star. 1D numerical simulation of the MRS mechanism has been made in bkpopsam ,ardbkpop . We have made 2D numerical simulation of the MRS using specially developed implicit conservative Lagrangian scheme on triangular grid with grid reconstruction. Our results show that MRS leads to the energy output of the $`1.1210^{51}`$erg and ejection of $`0.11M_{}`$.

Core collapse of a star leads to formation of the rapidly (almost rigidly) rotating neutron core and differentially rotating vast envelope. The explosion energy for the supernova is taking form the rotational (gravitational) energy of the magnetized star. The magnetic field plays the role of the ”transmission belt” for the rotational (gravitational) energy to the energy of the supernova explosion. Toroidal component of the magnetic field is amplifying with time due to the differential rotation of the star. When force produced by magnetic pressure substantially changes the local balance of forces a compression MHD wave appears and goes through the star’s envelope outwards. Moving along steeply decreasing density profile this wave transforms to the MHD shock which produces supernova explosion.

## 2 Formulation of the problem

### 2.1 Basic equations

Consider a set of magnetohydrodynamical equations with selfgravitation and with infinite conductivity:

$`{\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{d}𝐱}{\mathrm{d}t}}=𝐮,{\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{d}\rho }{\mathrm{d}t}}+\rho 𝐮=0,`$
$`\rho {\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{d}𝐮}{\mathrm{d}t}}=\left(p+{\displaystyle \frac{𝐇𝐇}{8\pi }}\right)+{\displaystyle \frac{(𝐇𝐇)}{4\pi }}\rho \mathrm{\Phi },`$
$`\rho {\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}t}}\left({\displaystyle \frac{𝐇}{\rho }}\right)=𝐇𝐮,\mathrm{\Delta }\mathrm{\Phi }=4\pi G\rho ,`$
$`\rho {\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{d}\epsilon }{\mathrm{d}t}}+p𝐮+\rho F(\rho ,T)=0,`$
where $`\frac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}t}=\frac{}{t}+𝐮`$ is the total time derivative, $`𝐱=(r,\phi ,z)`$, $`𝐮`$ is velocity vector, $`\rho `$ is density, $`p`$ is pressure, $`𝐇=(H_r,H_\phi ,H_z)`$ is magnetic field vector, $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ is gravitational potential, $`\epsilon `$ is internal energy, $`G`$ is gravitational constant, $`𝐇𝐇`$ is tensor of rank 2, $`F(\rho ,T)`$ is the rate of neutrino losses, other notations are standard..

Axial symmetry ($`\frac{}{\phi }=0`$) and symmetry to the equatorial plane ($`z=0`$) are assumed.

### 2.2 Equations of state

The equations of state $`P(\rho ,T)`$ abkpch . includes approximation of the tables from bps ; mjb  for the cold degenerate matter $`P_0(\rho )`$: $`PP(\rho ,T)=P_0(\rho )+\rho \mathrm{}T+\frac{\sigma T^4}{3},`$

$$P_0(\rho )=\{\begin{array}{ccccccccc}\hfill P_0^{(1)}& =& b_1\rho ^{1/3}/(1+c_1\rho ^{1/3}),\hfill & & at& \rho & & \rho _1,& \\ \hfill P_0^{(k)}& =& a10^{b_k(\text{lg}\rho 8.419)^{c_k}}\hfill & at\rho _{k1}& & \rho & & \rho _k,& k=\overline{2,6}\end{array}$$
(1)
$`b_1=10.1240483,c_1=10^{2.257},\rho _1=10^{9.419},b_2=1.0,c_2=1.1598,\rho _2=10^{11.5519},b_3=2.5032,c_3=0.356293,\rho _3=10^{12.26939},b_4=0.70401515,c_4=2.117802,\rho _4=10^{14.302},b_5=0.16445926,c_5=1.237985,\rho _5=10^{15.0388},b_6=0.86746415,c_6=1.237985,\rho _6\rho _5,a=10^{26.1673.}`$

Here $`\rho `$ is a total mass-energy. The energy of the unit mass is defined as: $`\epsilon =\epsilon _0(\rho )+\frac{3}{2}\mathrm{}T+\frac{\sigma T^4}{\rho },`$ where $`\mathrm{}`$ \- gas constant, $`\sigma `$ \- constant radiation density, and $`\epsilon _0(\rho )=\underset{0}{\overset{\rho }{}}\frac{P_0(\stackrel{~}{\rho })}{\stackrel{~}{\rho }^2}\text{d}\stackrel{~}{\rho }`$.

The neutrino losses from Urca processes are defined by relation iin :

$`f(\rho ,T)={\displaystyle \frac{1.310^9\text{æ}(\overline{T})\overline{T}^6}{1+(7.110^5\rho \overline{T})^{\frac{2}{5}}}}\text{erg}\text{g}^1\text{c}^1,`$ (2)
$`\text{æ(T)}=\{\begin{array}{ccccccccc}\hfill 1,& \overline{T}<7,& & & & & & & \\ \hfill 664.31+51.024(\overline{T}20),& 7\overline{T}20,& & & & & & & \\ \hfill 664.31,& \overline{T}>20,\overline{T}=T10^9.& & & & & & & \end{array}`$ (6)
Neutrino losses from pair annihilation, photo-production and plasma were also taken into account. These type of the neutrino losses have been approximated by the interpolation formulae from schindler  : $`Q_{tot}=Q_{pair}+Q_{photo}+Q_{plasm}`$ These three terms can be written in the following general form:

$$Q_d=K(\rho ,\alpha )e^{c\xi }\frac{a_0+a_1\xi +a_2\xi ^2}{\xi ^3+b_1\alpha +b_2\alpha ^2+b_3\alpha ^3}.$$
(7)
For $`d=pair`$, $`K(\rho ,\alpha )=g(\alpha )e^{2\alpha }`$, $`g(\alpha )=1\frac{13.04}{\alpha ^2}+\frac{133.5}{\alpha ^4}+\frac{1534}{\alpha ^6}+\frac{918.6}{\alpha ^8};`$ For $`d=photo`$, $`K(\rho ,\alpha )=(\rho /\mu _Z)\alpha ^5;`$ For $`d=plasm`$, $`K(\rho ,\alpha )=(\rho /\mu _Z)^3;`$ $`\xi =\left(\frac{\rho /\mu _Z}{10^9}\right)^{1/3}\alpha .`$ Here $`\mu _Z=2`$ is number of nucleons per electron. Coefficients $`c,a_i,b_i`$ for different $`d`$ are given in schindler .

The general formula for neutrino losses in nontransparent star has been written in the following form: $`F(\rho ,T)=(f(\rho ,T)+Q_{tot})e^{\frac{\tau _\nu }{10}}.`$ The multiplier $`e^{\frac{\tau _\nu }{10}}`$, where $`\tau _\nu =S_\nu nl_\nu `$ restricts neutrino flux for non zero depth to neutrino interaction with matter $`\tau _\nu `$. The cross-section for this interaction $`S_\nu `$ was represented in the form $`S_\nu =\frac{10^{44}T^2}{(0.596510^{10})^2}`$, the nucleons concentration is: $`n=\frac{\rho }{m_p}`$, $`m_p=1.6710^{24}\text{g}`$. The characteristic length scale $`l_\nu `$ which defines the depth for the neutrino absorbtion, was taken to be equal to the characteristic length of the density variation, as $`l_\nu =\frac{\rho }{|\rho |}=\frac{\rho }{\left((\rho /r)^2+(\rho /z)^2\right)^{1/2}}.`$ This value monotonically decreases when moving to the outward boundary, its maximum is in the center. It approximately determines to the depth of the neutrino absorbing matter. The multiplier $`1/10`$ was applied because in the degenerate matter of the hot neutron star only part of the nucleons with the energy near Fermi energy (it was taken $`1/10`$) takes part in the neutrino interaction processes.

## 3 Results

For the numerical simulations we have used implicit Lagrangian difference scheme on triangular grid with grid reconstruction. For the description of the applied numerical method see, for example, arkos  and references therein. The number of knots of the triangular grid was about 5000.

As a first stage of the MRS mechanism we have calculated a collapse of rotating star, leading to differentially rotating configuration. After the collapse the star (core of evolved massive star) consists of a almost rigidly rotating neutron star with radius $`10`$km which rotates with the period $`0.001`$ sec, and vast differentially rotating envelope .

After formation of the differentially rotationg configuration the initial poloidal magnetic field was switched on (Fig.1).

The energy of the initial magnetic field was $`E_{mag0}=10^6E_{grav}`$. Where $`E_{mag0}`$ \- is the energy of the initial magnetic field, $`E_{grav}`$ \- is the gravitational energy of the collapsed star.

Due to the differential rotation the toroidal component of the magnetic field is increasing with time. The magnetic pressure growths and produces compression MHD wave, which moves through envelope with steeply decreasing density. Soon after appearing this wave transforms into the MHD shock, which throws away part of the matter of the envelope. The MHD shock front is clearly seen at the velocity field plot (Fig.2 \- left plot). The magnetic field transmits angular momentum of the neutron star outwards (Fig.2 \- right plot).

Results of our simulations show that the energy of the supernova explosion is about $`1.1210^{51}erg`$ (35% of the rotational energy of the star). The explosion ejects about $`0.11M_{}`$ ($`9.7\%`$ of the mass of the star). At the Fig.3 the time evolution of the ejected mass and ejected energy are presented.

Detailed description of the results of the simulations of the MRS will be published elsewhere.

The authors G.S.B.-K. and S.G.M would like to thank the Organizing Committee for the support and hospitality. This work was partially supported by the grant RFBR 02-02-16900.

## Index