Cosmic ray production of 6Li by structure formation shocks in the early galaxy Original Research Article

We discuss the production of the element 6Li in the early Galaxy by cosmic rays accelerated at structure formation shocks, driven by the hierarchical merging of sub-Galactic clumps during Galaxy formation. The salient features of this scenario are discussed and compared with observations of 6Li in metal-poor halo stars, including a recent Subaru HDS result on the star HD140283. Some unique predictions of the model are clearly testable by future observations and may also provide important insight into how the Galaxy formed.