Nucleosynthesis of “light” heavy elements in neutrino-drive winds. Role of (a,n) reaction rates.

Neutrino-driven winds following core-collapse supernovae explosions have been proposed as a possible scenario where the synthesis of the so-called “light r elements” (between Fe and Ag) might occur. Steady-state model calculations, combined with nucleosynthesis reaction networks indicate a substantial sensitivity of the element abundances to (a,n) reaction rates and the astrophysical conditions (e.g. alpha-to-seed and neutron-to-seed ratios). In this presentation, I will summarize the most relevant aspects of our study, emphasizing the (a,n) nuclear reactions that need to be measured. Preliminary  experimental results on some of these reactions will be briefly discussed.