Proton Capture byBe7and the Solar Neutrino Problem

It is shown theoretically that the ${}_{}{}^7{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Be}(p,\gamma ){}_{}{}^8{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{B}$ reaction cross section contains substantial contributions from $p$ and $d$ partial waves at laboratory energies, and extrapolations to stellar energies based on the assumption of pure $s$-wave capture are therefore erroneous. However, there is no change in the predicted solar neutrino flux, because the calculated low-energy cross-section factor, 31 eVb, is essentially the same as the empirical value in current use.