Electron capture on iron group nuclei
  We present Gamow-Teller strength distributions from shell model Monte Carlo studies of fp-shell nuclei that may play an important role in the pre-collapse evolution of supernovae. We then use these strength distributions to calculate the electron-capture cross sections and rates in the zero-momentum transfer limit. We also discuss the thermal behavior of the cross sections. We find large differences in these cross sections and rates when compared to the naive single-particle estimates. These differences need to be taken into account for improved modeling of the early stages of type II supernova evolution. 
D.J. Dean(1,2), K. Langanke(3), L. Chatterjee (1,2,4), P.B. Radha (5),   and M.R. Strayer (1) ((1) ORNL, (2) University of T...