Speaker
Description
The astrophysical origin of the heaviest elements remains a mystery. While compact binary mergers are confirmed r-process sites, their delay-time distribution challenges their role as the dominant source of early enrichment. Massive collapsars, particularly those above the pair-instability gap, offer a compelling alternative, capable of producing neutron-rich outflows under extreme accretion conditions. We present results from 3D general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations with M1 neutrino transport, modeling the collapse of rapidly rotating, low-metallicity progenitors that form black holes with accretion disks. Our study quantifies how magnetic field strength and angular momentum configuration influence r-process yields and tracks black hole mass and spin evolution, which govern jet energetics and gamma-ray burst (GRB) signatures. These simulations provide self-consistent predictions of neutron-rich ejecta and their implications for kilonova emission.
