Favorable conditions for heavy element nucleosynthesis in rotating proto-magnetar winds

Understand

The neutrino-driven wind cooling phase of proto-neutron stars (PNSs) follows successful supernovae.

• Wind models without magnetic fields or rotation fail to achieve the necessary conditions for production of the third $r-$process peak, but robustly produce a weak $r-$process in neutron-rich winds.
• Using 2D magnetohydrodynamic simulations with magnetar-strength magnetic fields and rotation, we show that the PNS rotation rate significantly affects the thermodynamic conditions of the wind.
• We show that high entropy material is quasi-periodically ejected from the closed zone of the PNS magnetosphere with the required thermodynamic conditions to produce heavy elements.