Applicability Of The Hauser-Feshbach Approach For The Determination of   Astrophysical Reaction Rates
  Nuclear Astrophysics requires the knowledge of reaction rates over a wide range of nuclei and temperatures. In recent calculations the nuclear level density - as an important ingredient to the statistical model (Hauser-Feshbach) - has shown the highest uncertainties. In a back-shifted Fermi-gas formalism utilizing an energy-dependent level density parameter and employing microscopic corrections from a recent FRDM mass formula, we obtain a highly improved fit to experimental level densities. The resulting level density is used for determining criteria for the applicability of the statistical model on neutron-induced reactions. 
T. Rauscher (1), F.-K. Thielemann (1), K.-L. Kratz (2) ((1) Univ.   Basel, Switzerland, (2) Inst. f. Kernchemie, Mainz, Germany)