neutronization

Neutronization refers the formation of neutrons from protons and electrons. Such combination can occur under a number of circumstances, but the term neutronization is generally used for the process occurring within a stage of a core collapse supernova at a point when the high density results in the unbinding nucleons from nuclei, and protons and electrons quickly combine (neutronization burst). Each such combination additionally produces a neutrino, the source of the huge number of neutrinos emitted by such supernovae.

The combining of protons and electrons occurs in electron capture, a type of radioactivity also referred to as inverse beta decay. A similar process, sometimes called neutronization occurs consists of nuclei converting protons to neutrons when free electrons manage to tunnel in, theorized to occur during some of the high temperature and density of stages of core collapse supernovae. In all cases these, neutrinos are emitted.