CSIRO PUBLISHING www.publish.csiro.au/journals/pasa Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia, 2003, 20, 279–293 Production of Aluminium and the Heavy Magnesium Isotopes in Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars A. I. Karakas and J. C. Lattanzio School of Mathematical Sciences, Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, Vic 3800, Australia
[email protected] Received 2003 January 20, accepted 2003 May 30 Abstract: We investigate the production of aluminium and magnesium in asymptotic giant branch models covering a wide range in mass and composition. We evolve models from the pre-main sequence, through all intermediate stages, to near the end of the thermally-pulsing asymptotic giant branch phase. We then perform detailed nucleosynthesis calculations from which we determine the production of the magnesium and aluminium isotopes as a function of the stellar mass and composition. We present the stellar yields of sodium and the magnesium and aluminium isotopes. We discuss the abundance predictions from the stellar models in reference to abundance anomalies observed in globular cluster stars. Keywords: stars: AGB and post-AGB — stars: abundances — stars: interiors — stars: low mass — ISM: abundances 1 Introduction 1997; Siess, Livio, & Lattanzio 2002). There are currently In recent years our attempts to understand many aspects no quantitative studies of the production of the neutron- of nucleosynthesis and stellar evolution have come to rely rich Mg isotopes in low-metallicity WR stars. There are on our understanding of the production of the magne- quantitative studies of magnesium production in low- sium and aluminium isotopes. For example, abundance metallicityAGB stars (Forestini & Charbonnel 1997; Siess anomalies in globular cluster stars have been a problem et al.