| Probing the origin of r-process elements in the Milky Way |
| Benoit Côté |
| Konkoly Observatory, CSFK, Hungary |
| Galactic chemical evolution simulations are powerful tools to reconstruct the evolution of the elements across cosmic time. In this talk, I will focus on the rapid neutron-capture process (r process), which is responsible for creating half of all the elements heavier than iron, such as europium, gold, platinum, and uranium. I will present how we can use chemical evolution simulations to investigate the properties of r-process sites (e.g., neutron star mergers, rare classes of supernovae). Chemical evolution predictions should not be seen as the final answer, but rather as a complementary piece of puzzle that must be combined with the messages sent by other fields of research. In particular, I will present the connection made between galaxy simulations and the gravitational wave detection GW170817, as well as the difficulty of reproducing the chemical evolution trend of europium in the Galactic disk. I will also highlight our ongoing efforts to use the radioactive isotopic composition of the early Solar System to get insights into r-process nucleosynthesis. Finally, I will describe my future plans of using hydrodynamic simulations of the early Universe to address the chemical signatures left by r-process events on the surface of old metal-poor stars during the first billion years of galactic evolution. |