The Impact of ${}^{12} \mathrm{C}(\alpha, \gamma)^{16} \mathrm{O}$ Reaction on the Evolution of He Stars

Abstract

The ${}^{12} \mathrm{C}(\alpha, \gamma)^{16} \mathrm{O}$ reaction is one of the most important reactions in the evolution of massive stars, yet its rate is still highly uncertain. In this work, we investigated how variations in the ${}^{12} \mathrm{C}(\alpha, \gamma)^{16} \mathrm{O}$ reaction rate affect the evolution of a 14 $\rm M_{\odot}$ He star using the MESA code. Our simulations indicate that the ${}^{12} \mathrm{C}(\alpha, \gamma)^{16} \mathrm{O}$ reaction rate determines the conditions for C burning, affecting its explodability. As the reaction rate increases, central C-burning becomes neutrino-dominated, transitioning from the convective to the radiative regime. This leads to higher compactness and a larger iron core, indicating a more compact pre-SN core structure that is difficult to explode. Conversely, lower reaction rates shorten the C-burning lifetime and trigger earlier central Ne ignition, which counteracts core contraction. This results in reduced compactness and iron core mass. We also found that variations in reaction rates shift the location of the last C-burning shell. When this shell exceeds the mass coordinate used for compactness evaluation, the overall compactness increases significantly. Although the Si- and O-burning convective shells decrease compactness, the overall increase remains unaffected. This work suggests that the ${}^{12} \mathrm{C}(\alpha, \gamma)^{16} \mathrm{O}$ reaction play an important role in the pre-SN core structure and potentially impact the explodability of massive He stars.