Discovery of a new broad resonance in 19Ne: implications for the destruction of the cosmic gamma-ray emitter 18F.

Six proton-emitting states in 19Ne were studied through the inelastic scattering reaction H(19Ne,p);{19}Ne; (p)18F. Their energies and widths were derived from the protons detected at zero degree, while proton-proton angular correlations between the detector at zero degree and a segmented annular detector were used to determine their spin value. In addition to the known states, a new broad J=1/2 resonance has been evidenced at E_{x} approximately 7.9 MeV, approximately 1.45 MeV above the proton emission threshold. By introducing this resonance, the 18F(p,alpha)15O destruction rate in novae is significantly enhanced. This reduces the chance to observe the cosmic gamma-ray emission of 18F from novae in space telescopes.