Hans Bethe connected laboratory nuclear reactions with the sustained power of stars. With Charles Critchfield, he calculated the slow two-proton reaction that begins the proton–proton chain, treating both barrier penetration and the nuclear transition.[ref]
The Formation of Deuterons by Proton Combination by Hans Albrecht Bethe and Charles Louis Critchfield. 1938 abstract, reaction probability and solar-energy comparison
His 1939 analysis also developed hydrogen-burning reactions in which carbon and nitrogen nuclei act as intermediate carriers and are regenerated. The net conversion releases energy by turning hydrogen into helium; the intermediate nuclei provide a cycle rather than a fuel supply that is consumed once.[ref]A physicist.[ref]
https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2005/03/hans-bethe-titan-physics-and-conscience-science-dies-age-98. Independent professional profile
[ref]https://physics.cornell.edu/bethe-lectures. Independent professional profile
Portrait of Hans Albrecht Bethe
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