Details of the NON-SMOKER Results

1. Explanation

General

The database contains the results of calculations with the statistical model (Hauser-Feshbach) code NON-SMOKER for an energy and temperature range which is interesting for astrophysical purposes. Several tables with information can be chosen.

Calculations in the statistical model require the input of a number of different nuclear properties:


Although the model is well-established, different calculations vary in the various inputs and treatments of such properties. In the calculations presented here, it was attempted to find descriptions which can be used to predict nuclear properties also for nuclei far off stability for which no experimental data is known. Therefore, it was tried to minimize the direct input of experimental data (although some parametrizations are fit to available nuclear data). Thus, we are interested in descriptions which lead to a low average deviation between predicted and observed properties. Nevertheless, local deviations of higher magnitude can occur.

Details about the inputs used for this statistical model calculation are given on the same page as the requested table. For an explanation of the reference codes and for more details on the calculations and the NON-SMOKER code, see the reference section.

Accessing the database

The access form should be quite self-explanatory. In the element box, the standard abbreviation of the element should be input, as it is used in periodic systems or nuclear charts; e.g. Ne for Neon or au for Gold (input is not case sensitive). The massnumber is an integer with 2 or 3 digits.

Options

The recommended set of options is the default, therefore it should be sufficient in most cases to just enter element and mass number and to select which kind of table and reaction one wants to extract.

Theoretical masses: By default, in the calculations experimental values are used if available. The setting of the theoretical mass will affect experimentally unknown masses (separation energies), as well as the level density for all nuclei.
The FRDM covers the widest mass range, ETFSI values are available only for A>35, and the ETFSIQ table starts at Cr (Z>23).

Applicability of the model

On some of the tables, warnings may be given that the statistical model may not be applicable below a certain energy or temperature, although values are given below that limit. The statistical model assumes that averaged transmission functions can be used, i.e. averaging over resonances in the contributing energy window is permitted. At lower excitation energy of the compound nucleus, fewer resonances will be available and thus there may be a lower energy/temperature limit for the application of the model. An estimate of the limiting energy/temperature was derived in a previous paper and this is used here.

It has to be emphasized that very conservative assumptions are used and that the given results may be valid even below the given limit. The warning is merely issued to point out that one should be cautious and aware of the limitations.

There may be another limitation inherent to all statistical model calculations which do not explicitly include gamma cascades in the compound nucleus. Treating the cascades and the particle escape from the cascade only approximately may lead to larger errors for reactions with negative reaction Q values, i.e. for endothermic reactions. This is not necessarily the case but, in general, for these cases it is safer to calculate the reverse reaction (with positive Q value) and compute the desired reaction by applying detailed balance.

Referencing the results

When using results from this database and the linked pages, credit should be given to the access page and the NON-SMOKER papers. I would appreciate it if a copy of the work is sent to me before publication, so that misconceptions or misinterpretations of the results can be avoided.

Please see also the disclaimer.

Error messages

There are several error messages which can be returned instead of the requested table. They should be self-explanatory. Below is a list of possible messages.

Database access disabled!
Access to the database is currently not possible, due to intentional locking. Please try again later.
Unauthorized Access or Wrong Password
A wrong username/password combination has been entered (or none at all). Please try again with the correct combination.
Error in element name
The element name cannot be recognized. Remember that you have to input the abbreviation of the element, not the charge number. Please try again.
Error in mass number
The mass number cannot be converted. Remember that it has to be an integer between 0 and 999. Please try again.
The results for the requested reaction are currently not publicly available.
For certain reasons, some of the reaction results may still be restricted. Please try again later. In urgent cases you may send an email message to obtain further information.
Database currently not accessible...
The database cannot be opened, either due to intentional locking or because of a crash of the file system. Please try again later.
Error: Statistical model may not be applicable for this target:
For very light elements, one has to be very careful in applying the statistical model. Instead of a simple warning message, the access has been disabled for very light nuclei. If you are interested in results for those, please send a request by email.
No values for this target available
For the requested reaction, no entry was found. Either you have specified an unbound target outside the neutron- or proton-dripline, or outside the range of calculated elements. (Note, that different mass formula also yield different locations of the driplines).
Error in target specification
Either mass number or element name (or both) have not been specified in the query string. This should never happen when the HTML form is used.
Unknown Table Option
An unknown option for a table has been specified in the query string. This should never happen when the HTML form is used.
Error in Database!
The specified target and reaction was found but the data was not in the proper format. If you encounter this message, please send a message by email, reporting the exact circumstances.
Error in access control script
Fatal error. If you encounter this, please send a message by email, reporting the exact circumstances.

Bug reports

If you encounter a failure or an inexplicable result, please first check the explanation of the database and the used methods. Check also the explanation of the error messages. Consult the history section for further details of the current release.

In case you still think that there might be a bug in the database or in the returned result, please send a bug report, specifying exactly what you did and where you see the problem.

Thomas Rauscher


2. History

24-Aug-2006

This history list is being discontinued as it is replaced by the forum. Please look there for revisions and other information.

20-Aug-2006

Moved to new server. Layout change of web page; database functions should be unaffected.

9-Jul-2005 to 11-Jul-2005

Temporarily unavailable due to hardware problem!
Problem fixed.

24-Jul-2003

Displaying the lower temperature/energy limit for the statistical model did not work since the reconfiguration of the filesystem in March (see below). Fixed. At the same time, an error in the displayed limits was found (the target level density was used instead of the one in the compound system). Fixed (new version number 2.3).

24-Mar-2003

Due to a misconfiguration in the new filesystem, the database could not be accessed for about a week. Fixed.

3-Sep-2001

Free access to the Java and HTML interface! The password restriction has been lifted. The ADNDT reference page was updated again.

2-Apr-2001

New main page introduced. The main page contains additional information on the newly published tables of cross section and reaction rates. The ADNDT reference page was updated, too. The NON-SMOKER query form was moved to a separate page.

2-Apr-2001

Machine readable files with the complete sets of reaction rate fits, reaction rates, cross sections, partition functions and experimental level information are available on-line. This is in addition to the interactive nucleus-by-nucleus NON-SMOKER interfaces in Java and HTML. The cross sections and rates in the files correspond to the ones published in Atomic Data Nuclear Data Tables 79 (2001) (September issue). See that publication for a detailed explanation of the tables.

20-Mar-2001

The web site was unaccessible due to a hardware failure between March 16th and March 20th. Short periods of unavailability could be experienced in the next few days.

24-Jan-2001

New Java interface brought online!

25-Apr-2000

Isospin suppressed reactions made available.

8-Jan-2000

Public version 2.2: Update of ETFSI version. The present versions of the FRDM and ETFSI-Q rates correspond to the rate fits published in Atomic Data Nuclear Data Tables 75 (2000) 1 (Parts 1 and 2, see also the preprint).

5-Jan-2000

Public version 2.1: Update of ETFSI-Q version.

3-Jan-2000

Public version 2.0: Fixed some bugs in version 1.5 for alpha unstable nuclei. So far, only the FRDM version is updated!

11-Nov-1999

Public version 1.5: Fixed a few ground state spins far off stability. This leads to a few altered rates and partition functions.

10-Sep-1999

The machine is up and running. Access is ok. No damage done.

3-Sep-1999

Due to a severe hardware crash, the site is temporarily unaccessible. Operation is expected to resume Sep 13.

14-May-1999

The cluster is up and the site is working again.

11-May-1999

Due to a severe hardware crash, the site is temporarily unaccessible. Operation is expected to resume May 17.

15-Mar-1999 till 19-Mar-1999

Due to an upgrade of the operating system of the server, the database may not be accessible all the time during the dates given above. Make sure to try at different times.

1-Mar-1999

Public version 1.33/1: Exponents of MACS print correctly now. All exponents are now denoted by 'e' instead of 'D'.

22-Feb-1999 till 26-Feb-1999

Due to a failure of a power supply the database was not accessible in the week given above. If you encountered an error while trying to retrieve results, please try again.

12-Nov-1998

Public version 1.33/0 of the database has been put on the Web. Isospin suppressed reactions still restricted.
© Dr. Thomas Rauscher (email), last change 2006-Aug-20