A Physical Review Letters article looks at the rate at which helium and deuterium fuse to produce lithium-6. This is critical in resolving the discrepancy between Big Bang predictions and astronomical observations for the primordial abundance of lithium-6.

The quantitative and predictive description of the fusion probability across the Big Bang energy window is needed to determine the radiative capture rate.

Michigan State University future faculty member Chloe Hebbron, currently a visiting assistant professor at FRIB, is the lead author of the article.