Contrasting high-spin yrast bands in 172Os and 174Os and an unexpected low-frequency anomaly in 172Os

The yrast bands of the neutron deficient isotopes ¹⁷²Os and ¹⁷⁴Os have been identified to spins of about 24. The yrast band in ¹⁷⁴Os shows no bandcrossing anomalies, confirming the shell effect observed in other N = 98 nuclei. In contrast, a strong backbend observed at a frequency of about 0.26 MeV in ¹⁷²Os is attributed to the s-band crossing. A weaker band-crossing is also observed at a lower frequency, about 0.24 MeV, in ¹⁷²Os. This unexpected anomaly may be due to either a deformation effect, or to a change in the s-band structure.