Cosmological lithium problem
In cosmology, the lithium problem or lithium discrepancy refers to the discrepancy between the observed abundance of lithium produced in Big Bang nucleosynthesis and the amount that should theoretically exist. Namely, the most widely-accepted models of the Big Bang suggest that three times as much primordial lithium, in particular lithium-7, should exist. This contrasts with the observed abundance of isotopes of hydrogen (1H and 2H) and helium (3He and 4He) that are consistent with predictions.[1] This deficiency of lithium may in part be due to faster destruction than synthesis of 7Li and its progenitor 7Be in nuclear reactions, though no conclusive results on the reaction flow in Big Bang nucleosynthesis have been obtained. Newer theories involving physics beyond the standard model, involving not well understood dark matter, have also been proposed to explain the possible destruction of lithium, also inconclusively.[2][3]
See also
References
- ^ Hou, S.Q.; He, J.J.; Parikh, A.; Kahl, D.; Bertulani, C.A.; Kajino, T.; Mathews, G.J.; Zhao, G. (2017). "Non-extensive statistics to the cosmological lithium problem" (pdf). The Astrophysical Journal. 834 (2). doi:10.3847/1538-4357/834/2/165.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ Bertulani, C.A.; Shubhchintak; Mukhamedzhanov, A.M. (2018). "Cosmological lithium problems". The European Physical Journal Conferences. 184. arXiv:1802.03469. doi:10.1051/epjconf/201818401002.
- ^ Woo, Marcus (21 February 2017). "The Cosmic Explosions That Made the Universe". earth. BBC. Archived from the original on 21 February 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
A mysterious cosmic factory is producing lithium. Scientists are now getting closer at finding out where it comes from
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