Thermonuclear reactions in dense stellar matter - Electron screening revisited

Relativistic degenerate electrons have a considerable screening effect on Coulomb repulsion between reacting nuclei even in the limit of high densities. The enhancement factor of the thermonuclear reaction rate resulting from such an electron screening is recalculated. It is shown that the enhancement is significant in high-Z materials such as carbon and oxygen at the densities near ignition. 13 refs.