Constraining neutron-capture reactions for the astrophysical i-process

The synthesis of heavy elements in the Universe has been one of the main open questions in Nuclear Astrophysics. Recent astronomical observations of carbon enhanced metal-poor stars (CEMP) showed a significant number of stars with abundance patterns that cannot be reproduced by the traditional neutron-capture processes (s and r). An alternative process was introduced for this purpose with intermediate neutron densities, called the i process. From the nuclear physics point of view, most nuclear properties are known experimentally, and the main uncertainty comes from neutron-capture reaction rates. This talk will focus on an experimental program taking place at the NSCL to provide indirect constraints for (n,$\gamma$) reactions using the $\beta$-Oslo method.