Effects of negatively charged massive particles on primordial stars

The effects of negatively charged nonstrongly interacting massive particles, denoted as X({minus}) particles, on stellar hot hydrogen burning are considered. Such particles would bind to nuclei and catalyze a very efficient hydrogen-burning cycle. This nuclear burning cycle would occur because the additional binding energy provided by binding the X({minus}) particles to Be-8 nuclei creates a stable entity. Although such a cycle would not be likely to be of significance to present-day stars, it could significantly alter the range of masses for which primordial Population III stars explode. The nucleosynthesis produced in these X({minus}) induced supernovae can differ markedly from that of ordinary beta-limited CNO cycle-induced explosions of very massive and super-massive stars. Thus the resulting abundances night provide constraints on the existence of intermediate life-time X({minus}) particles and/or the Population III initial mass function. 29 refs.