Rotational Mixing and the Primordial Lithium Abundance

There has been recent progress in the study of the angular momentum evolution of low mass stars (Krishnamurthi et al 1997a). Theoretical models can now be constructed which reproduce the angular momentum evolution of low mass open cluster stars and the distribution of initial conditions can be inferred from young clusters. In this poster we report on the application of these models to the problem of rotational mixing in halo stars. The distribution of initial conditions inferred from young clusters produces a well-defined halo lithium “plateau” with modest scatter and a small population of outliers. Different choices for the solar calibration produce a range of absolute depletion factors. We show that both the dispersion and the ratio of Li depletion to Li depletion increase as the absolute Li depletion increases. The measured Li in HD 84937 and the dispersion in the plateau set independent upper bounds on the Li depletion. Consistency with open clusters and the Sun, along with claims of an intrinsic dispersion in the plateau, set a lower bound. We derive a range of 0.2-0.4 dex Li depletion in halo field stars. Implications for cosmology are discussed.