Part b: Nuclear Fusion is the process by which two or more atomic nuclei join together, or

"fuse", to form a single heavier nucleus. This is usually accompanied by the release of large quantities of energy.

Energy: The origin of the energy released in fusion of light elements is due to an interplay
of two opposing forces, the nuclear force which draws together protons and neutrons, and the Coulomb force which causes protons to repel each other.The protons are positively charged and repel each other but they nonetheless stick together, portraying the existence of another force referred to as a nuclear attraction. The strong nuclear force, that overcomes electric repulsion in a very close range. The effect of this force is not observed outside the nucleus. Hence the force has a strong dependence on distance making it a short range force. The same force also pulls the neutrons together, or neutrons and protons together. Because the nuclear force is stronger than the Coulomb force for atomic nuclei smaller than iron and nickel, building up these nuclei from lighter nuclei by fusion releases the extra energy from the net attraction of these particles A substantial energy barrier of electrostatic forces must be overcome before fusion can occur. At large distances two naked nuclei repel one another because of the repulsive electrostatic force between their positively charged protons. If two nuclei can be brought close enough together, however, the electrostatic repulsion can be overcome by the attractive nuclear force, which is stronger at close distances.

Stellar Nucleosynthesis is the collective term for the nucleosynthesis,

or nuclear reactions, taking place in stars to build the nuclei of the elements heavier than hydrogen. Fusion reactions of light elements power the stars and produce virtually all elements in a process called nucleosynthesis.

Role Of Fusion In Nucleosynthesis: In 1920, Arthur Eddington, on the basis of the

precise measurements of atoms by F.W. Aston suggest that stars obtained their energy from nuclear fusion of hydrogen to form helium. Stellar nucleosynthesis occurs in stars during the process of stellar evolution. It is responsible for the generation of elements from carbon to iron by nuclear fusion processes. Stars are the nuclear furnaces in which H and He are fused into heavier nuclei. In all of the stars throughout the universe fusion is the process which creates the tremendous amounts of energy that is released. Astrophysicists refer to fusion when it occurs in stars as nucleosynthesis because, along with releasing energy, it creates (synthesizes) new elements A star obtains its energy by fusing together light nuclei to form heavier nuclei; in this process, mass (m) is converted into energy (E) in accordance with Einstein's formula, E=mc2, in which c is the speed of light. The reactions are initiated by the high temperatures (about 14 million degrees Celsius) at the centre of the star. In the course of producing nuclear energy, the star synthesizes all the elements of the periodic table from its initial composition of mostly hydrogen and a small amount of helium.
Transformation of Hydrogen to Helium
The first step is the fusion of four hydrogen nuclei to make one helium nucleus. The most important series of fusion reaction are converting H to He. Reactions produce through steps-involving close counter of 2 particles. we will consider the main ones: the PP cycle and CNO cycle.

The Proton-Proton Cycle

In the proton-proton cycle, two hydrogen nuclei (protons) are fused and one of these protons is converted to a neutron by beta decay to make a deuterium nucleus (one proton and one neutron). Then a third proton is added to deuterium to form the light isotope of helium, helium-3. When two helium-3 nuclei collide, they form a nucleus of ordinary helium, helium4 (two protons and two neutrons), and release two protons. In each of these steps

considerable energy is also released.

The Carbon-Nitrogen-Oxygen Cycle The carbon-nitrogen-oxygen cycle requires minute traces of carbon as a catalyst. Four protons are added, one by one, to a carbon nucleus to form a succession of excited (unstable) nuclei of carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen. The intermediate nuclei shed their excess electric charge via beta decay and the final oxygen nucleus spontaneously splits into the original carbon nucleus and a helium-4 nucleus, releasing energy. The net effect is again the combination of four hydrogen nuclei to form one helium-4 nucleus; the carbon is free to begin the cycle over again.