Systematic study of (γ,n) reaction rates for Z⩾78 isotopes

The ({gamma},n) reaction rates of the isotopes {sup 196,198,204}Hg and {sup 204}Pb have been determined using the photoactivation technique in an energy region relevant for p process nucleosynthesis. The systematic study of the ground-state ({gamma},n) reaction rates on even-even nuclei in the mass region Z{>=}78 is complemented with these experiments. The data are compared to rates predicted in the framework of two statistical model approaches.