A comment on the 7Be(p,γ)8B cross section and the solar neutrino problem

Evidence is presented which indicates that the accepted value for the cross section of the 7Be(p,γ)8B reaction at stellar energies is probably too large. It is suggested that the accepted value of the 7Li(d,p)8Li cross section, which has been used for normalization purposes, is too large; that the accepted value for the ratio of the 7Be(p,γ)8B and 7Li(d,p)8Li cross sections is too large; and that the energy dependence used to extrapolate to stellar energies from the higher energies at which measurements have been made is inaccurate. The consequent reduction of the 7Be(p,γ)8B cross section by about 30% would not be sufficient to resolve the solar neutrino problem but would significantly lessen the discrepancy between observation and calculation