Core polarization effects on C4 form factors of sd-shell nuclei

Coulomb form factors of C4 transitions in even-even N = Z sd-shell nuclei ( ²⁰Ne, ²⁴Mg, ²⁸Si and ³²S) are discussed taking into account higher-energy configurations outside the sd-shell model space which are called core polarization effects. Higher configurations are taken into account through a microscopic theory, which allows particle-hole excitations from the 1s and 1p shells core orbits and also from the 2s1d-shell orbits to the higher allowed orbits with excitations up to 4 ω. The effect of core polarization is found essential in both the transition strengths and momentum transfer dependence of form factors, and gives a remarkably good agreement with the measured data with no adjustable parameters. The calculations are based on the Wildenthal interaction for the sd-shell model space and on the modified surface delta interaction (MSDI) for the core polarization effects. Received: 24 January 2002 / Accepted: 29 July 2002 / Published online: 6 March 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: baguniv@uruklink.net Communicated by P. Schuck     

Single-particle quadrupole electromagnetic transitions in p-shell and sd-shell nuclei

Electron scattering Coulomb form factors for the single-particle quadrupole transitions in p-shell and sd-shell nuclei have been studied. Core polarization effects are included through a microscopic theory that includes excitations from the core orbits up to higher orbits with 2ω excitations. The modified surface delta interaction is adopted as a residual interaction. The results are discussed for the ( 1p _1/2 ^-1↦1p _3/2 ^-1) proton transition in ¹⁵N, ( 1d _5/2↦2s _1/2) neutron transition in ¹⁷O and ( 1d _3/2 ^-1↦2s _1/2 ^-1) proton transition in ³⁹K. The inclusion of core polarization effects modifies the form factors markedly and describes the experimental data very well in both the absolute strength and the momentum transfer dependence. Received: 18 April 2002 / Accepted: 1 July 2002 / Published online: 6 March 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: baguniv@uruklink.net Communicated by A. Molinari     

Inelastic excitation of <Superscript>187</Superscript>Re

Excited states in ¹⁸⁷Re populated by inelastic scattering of a 500 MeV ⁸²Se beam have been studied by means of in-beam γ-ray spectroscopy. Levels built on the 5/2⁺[402] and 9/2^-[514] one-quasiparticle states were measured up to I ^π = (21/2⁺) and (21/2^-), respectively. In addition, several new levels including an isomer at 1682 keV with a half-life of 114(23) ns have been found. Quasiparticle configurations of the levels and the transition rates are discussed. Received: 12 December 2002 / Accepted: 13 March 2003 / Published online: 13 May 2003     

Precision electron-gamma spectroscopic measurements in <Superscript>75</Superscript>As

The decay of ⁷⁵Se to levels of ⁷⁵As has been studied using an HPGe detector for gamma-ray and a mini-orange electron spectrometer for conversion electron measurements. We identify 38 transitions in this decay, including 18 gamma rays and 16 conversion electron lines reported for the first time. New results also include E2 multipolarity assignment for the 81 keV transition, M1 assignment to three newly observed transitions and M1 + E2 for the 617 keV transition. A revised ⁷⁵As level scheme is constructed using the Ritz combination principle through the computer code GTOL. While confirming the existence of 10 well-established levels, two levels at 587 and 859 keV are newly placed into the decay scheme of ⁷⁵Se. The interpretation of the observed levels in terms of various theoretical approaches is briefly discussed. The newly placed 586.8 keV 1/2^- and 859.9 keV 1/2⁺ levels are studied in the light of the Interacting Boson-Fermion Model.     

Nuclear quadrupole moments of 5/2<Superscript>-</Superscript> and 9/2<Superscript>-</Superscript> states in <Superscript>169</Superscript>Ta

The nuclear spectroscopic quadrupole moments for the πh_9/25/2^-, 1/2^-[541] and the πh_11/29/2^-, 9/2^-[514] isomeric states in ¹⁶⁹Ta have been measured employing the time differential perturbed angular-distribution technique following the nuclear reaction ¹⁵⁹Tb(¹⁶O, 6nγ)¹⁶⁹Ta at beam energy 104 MeV. The ratio of the intrinsic quadrupole moments has been derived as 1.87(13) from the measured quadrupole precession frequencies of the corresponding states. The model-independent analysis of the equilibrium deformation indicates strong prolate- and oblate-driving nature of the 1/2^-[541] and 9/2^-[514] orbitals in ^169,171Ta isotopes, respectively.     

Nuclear deformation and the two-neutrino double- β decay in <Superscript>124, 126</Superscript>Xe , <Superscript>128, 130</Superscript>Te , <Superscript>130, 132</Superscript>Ba and <Superscript>150</Superscript>Nd isotopes

The two-neutrino double-beta decay of ^{124, 126}Xe , ^{128, 130}Te , ^{130, 132}Ba and ¹⁵⁰Nd isotopes is studied in the Projected Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (PHFB) model. Theoretical 2ν β^-β^- half-lives of ^{128, 130}Te , and ¹⁵⁰Nd isotopes, and 2ν β⁺β⁺ , 2ν β⁺ EC and 2ν ECEC for ^{124, 126}Xe and ^{130, 132}Ba nuclei are presented. Calculated quadrupolar transition probabilities B(E2 : 0⁺ → 2⁺) , static quadrupole moments and g -factors in the parent and daughter nuclei reproduce the experimental information, validating the reliability of the model wave functions. The anticorrelation between nuclear deformation and the nuclear transition matrix element M _2ν is confirmed.     

Spectroscopy of <Superscript>17</Superscript>C and (sd )<Superscript>3</Superscript> structures in heavy carbon isotopes

The structure of ¹⁷C has been investigated using the three-neutron transfer reaction (¹²C,⁹C) on a ¹⁴C target at 231MeV incident energy, the reaction Q-value is Q ₀ = - 46.930MeV. Eleven new states up to 16.3MeV excitation energy were identified. The same reaction has also been used on a ¹²C target ( Q ₀ = - 38.787MeV), and excited states in ¹⁵C up to 19MeV were observed. In ¹⁷C the three transferred neutrons populate (sd )³ configurations on the ¹⁴C core. The comparison of levels populated by the (¹²C,⁹C) reaction in ¹⁷C, ¹⁶C and ¹⁵C reveals a strong similarity of their properties. This concerns especially nine states in each of the three carbon isotopes, which show practically the same excitation energies except a constant mean shift of +5.82MeV for ¹⁶C and +6.65MeV for ¹⁵C with respect to ¹⁷C. The triples of states from the three isotopes, which correspond to each other, have also similar widths and cross-section ratios. It is concluded that the same (sd )³ structures are populated in the three carbon isotopes. The observed levels of ¹⁷C are also compared to the levels of ¹⁹O with known assignments and to shell model calculations, and their decay properties are discussed.     

On the unusual properties of the 282 keV state in <Superscript>135</Superscript>Sb

Recently the first excited state in ¹³⁵Sb has been observed at the unexpectedly low excitation energy of only 282keV and interpreted as mainly d _5/2 proton coupled to the ¹³⁴Sn core. Based on theoretical considerations it was suggested that its low excitation energy is related to a relative shift of the proton d _5/2 and g _7/2 orbits induced by the neutron excess. We have measured the lifetime of the 282keV state by the advanced time-delayed βγγ(t) method. The measured half-life, T _1/2 = 6.1(4)ns, yields exceptionally low limits of B(M1;5/2₁ ⁺→7/2₁ ⁺)≤3.0×10^-4 μ ² _N and B(E2;5/2₁ ⁺→7/2₁ ⁺)≤54e ² fm ⁴. These strongly hindered M1 and slow E2 transition rates are similar to those for the transition de-populating the first excited state at 405keV in ²¹¹Bi. Results of shell model calculations with realistic interactions are presented. The M1 decay rate was found to be extremely sensistive both to the wave function and to the M1 effective operator.     

1<Superscript>+</Superscript>(0<Superscript>+</Superscript>) state at 12.4 MeV in <Superscript>20</Superscript>Ne

Careful review of all the evidence makes it clear that at least three states are important at 12.4-MeV excitation in ²⁰Ne (four, if the broad (2⁺) at 12.5 MeV is included). The three states are 3 ^- , 0 ⁺ , and 1 ⁺ (0⁺). The latter, which is quite strong in ¹⁹F (³He, d) singles, is probably the state observed in coincidence with 6.13-MeV γ-rays in ¹⁹F(³He, dγ). Received: 19 August 2002 / Accepted: 28 October 2002 / Published online: 17 January 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: fortune@physics.upenn.edu Communicated by D. Guerreau     

Stable collective triaxial rotation in <Superscript>77</Superscript>Kr

Based on the γ -spectroscopic analysis of G.N. Sylvan et al., configuration-dependent cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky calculations have been performed. They describe the nucleus ⁷⁷Kr globally in good agreement with the experimental findings and the expectations derived from single-particle orbitals in a deformed potential. Within these calculations, the unambiguous assignment of a configuration with three protons and five neutrons in the g _9/2 shell to the high-spin Yrast states of negative parity indicates that the nucleus ⁷⁷Kr has stable triaxial deformation and rotates about the intermediate axis. This not only disproves the recent interpretation of an occupation of the d _5/2 orbital being responsible for the strong deformation in this band, but also represents one of the first examples in this mass region for such a rotation.     

Investigations into the alpha-decay of <Superscript>195</Superscript>At

The low-energy nuclear structure and decay properties of the neutron-deficient isotopes ¹⁹⁵At and ¹⁹¹Bi have been studied. ¹⁹⁵At was produced in the reaction ¹⁴²Nd(⁵⁶Fe,p2n)¹⁹⁵At and ¹⁹¹Bi as the daughter activity of ¹⁹⁵At. The activities were implanted in a position-sensitive silicon detector after being separated from the primary beam by a gas-filled recoil separator. The 1/2⁺ intruder state was determined to be the ground state in ¹⁹⁵At with an alpha-decay energy of E _α = 6953(3) keV and a half-life T _1/2 = 328(20) ms. Another state with an alpha-decay energy E _α = 7075(4) keV and a half-life T _1/2 = 147(5) ms was found to decay to a 148.7(5) keV excited state in ¹⁹¹Bi for which a spin and parity of 7/2^- were deduced. Consequently, the same 7/2^- character was assigned to the initial state at 32(7) keV in ¹⁹⁵At on the basis of unhindered alpha-decay. The 9/2^- state, being the ground state in heavier odd-mass astatine isotopes, was not observed. Received: 16 September 2002 / Accepted: 19 December 2002 / Published online: 25 March 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: heikki.kettunen@phys.jyu.fi RID="b" ID="b"Present address: Laboratory of Radiochemistry, P.O. Box 55, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland. RID="c" ID="c"Present address: Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, P.O. Box 14, FIN-00881 Helsinki, Finland. Communicated by W. Henning     

Band termination in the Z = N odd-odd nuclei <Superscript>46</Superscript>V and <Superscript>50</Superscript>Mn

The configuration-dependent cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky approach has been employed to study the properties and band structures at high spin in the Z = N odd-odd nuclei ⁴⁶V and ⁵⁰Mn. The observed bands are explained and terminating states are confirmed by the calculations. The calculated and observed bands are in good agreement without normalization, especially for terminating states. Possible bands with rotation around the intermediate axis and the effect of γ-deformation on the total energy of several interesting configurations are discussed. Received: 2 April 2002 / Accepted: 27 January 2003 / Published online: 15 April 2003     

Search for superheavy hydrogen isotopes <Superscript>6</Superscript>H and <Superscript>7</Superscript>H in stopped π-absorption reactions

Experimental search for superheavy hydrogen isotopes ⁶H and ⁷H was performed in the stopped pion absorption on ⁹Be and ¹¹B nuclei. The structures in the missing-mass spectra were observed in the reaction channels ⁹Be(π^-, pd )X and ¹¹B(π^-, p⁴He)X . Four states of ⁶H were proposed. Evidences for ⁷H formation were obtained in the reaction channels ⁹Be(π^-, pp)X and ¹¹B(π^-, p³He)X .     

New results from the HAPPEX Experiments at Q<Superscript>2</Superscript> = 0.1GeV/c<Superscript>2</Superscript>

The nucleon's strange electric and magnetic form factors G _E ^s and G _M ^s can be probed via parity-violating electron scattering. The HAPPEX Collaboration has made new measurements of the parity-violating asymmetry A _PV in elastic scattering of 3GeV electrons off hydrogen and ⁴He targets with 〈θ_lab〉 ≈ 6.0^° . For ⁴He the preliminary result is A _PV = (+ 6.43±0.23(stat)±0.22(syst))×10^-6 . For hydrogen the preliminary result is A _PV = (- 1.60±0.12(stat)±0.05(syst))×10^-6 . From these values we extract G ^s _E = 0.004±0.014±0.013 at 〈Q ²〉 = 0.077 GeV/c^2 , and G ^s _E +0.09G ^s _M = 0.004±0.011±0.005 at 〈Q ²〉 = 0.109 GeV/c^2 , both consistent with zero, providing stringent new limits on the role of strange quarks in the vector structure of the nucleon.     

High-spin states in the <Superscript>97</Superscript>Tc nucleus

High-spin states in the ⁹⁷Tc nucleus have been studied by in-beam γ-ray spectroscopy with the reaction ⁸²Se(¹⁹F,4nγ) at 68 MeV incident energy. Excited states have been observed up to about 8 MeV excitation and spin 43/2. The observed level scheme is compared with results of shell model calculations. Received: 22 November 2002 / Accepted: 23 December 2002 / Published online: 18 March 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: bucurescu@tandem.nipne.ro RID="b" ID="b"Present address: INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Legnaro, Italy. RID="b" ID="b"Present address: INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Legnaro, Italy. RID="b" ID="b"Present address: INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Legnaro, Italy. RID="c" ID="c"Present address: Università di Padova, Padova, Italy. Communicated by C. Signorini     

Investigations of low- and high-spin states of <Superscript>132</Superscript>La

The fusion evaporation reaction ¹²²Sn(¹⁴N, 4n)¹³²La was used to populate the high-spin states of ¹³²La at the beam energy of 60 MeV. A new band consisting of mostly E2 transitions has been discovered. This band has the interesting links to the ground state 2^- and the isomeric state 6^-. A new transition of energy 351 keV connecting the low-spin states of the positive-parity band based on the πh _11/2 ⊗ νh _11/2 particle configuration, has been found. This has played a very important role in resolving the existing ambiguities and inconsistencies in the spin assignment of the band head. Received: 12 August 2002 / Accepted: 18 March 2003 / Published online: 7 May 2003     

Super-allowed α decay above doubly-magic <Superscript>100</Superscript>Sn and properties of <Superscript>104</Superscript>Te = <Superscript>100</Superscript>Sn ⊗ α

α-decay half-lives for ^{104, 105, 106}Te and ^{108, 109, 110}Xe close above the doubly-magic ¹⁰⁰Sn are calculated from systematic double-folding potentials. The derived α preformation factors are compared to results for ^{212, 213, 214}Po and ^{216, 217, 218}Rn above the doubly-magic ²⁰⁸Pb. α-decay energies of Q _α = 5.42±0.07MeV and 4.65±0.15MeV are predicted for ¹⁰⁴Te and ¹⁰⁸Xe; the corresponding half-lives are T _1/2 ≈ 5ns for ¹⁰⁴Te and of the order of 60μs for ¹⁰⁸Xe. Additionally, the properties of rotational bands in ¹⁰⁴Te are analyzed, and the first excited 2⁺ state in ¹⁰⁴Te is predicted at E _x = 650±40keV; it decays preferentially by γ emission with a reduced transition strength of 10 Weisskopf units to the ground state of ¹⁰⁴Te and with a minor branch by α emission to the ground state of ¹⁰⁰Sn.     

Observation of M3 isomeric transition from <Superscript>156m</Superscript>Pm through the βdecay of <Superscript>156</Superscript>Nd

An M3 transition in a doubly odd nucleus of ¹⁵⁶Pm was identified by internal conversion electron measurement through the β-decay of ¹⁵⁶Nd which was separated from the fission products of ²³⁵U using the on-line mass separator KUR-ISOL. The isomeric state at 150.3keV de-excites to the ground state with the M3 transition, and the spin-parity is considered to be 1^-. Nilsson configurations are also discussed on the basis of the systematics.     

In-beam γ-ray spectroscopy of <Superscript>190</Superscript>Po: First observation of a low-lying prolate band in Po isotopes

Gamma rays from excited states of ¹⁹⁰Po have been observed using the Jurosphere Ge-detector array coupled to the RITU gas-filled separator. They were associated with a collective band which from spin 4 onwards resembles the prolate rotational bands known in the isotones ¹⁸⁸Pb and ¹⁸⁶Hg. This indicates that in ¹⁹⁰Po the prolate configuration becomes yrast above I = 2. The experimental results are interpreted in a two-band mixing calculation and are in agreement with α-decay data and potential energy surface calculations. Received: 10 January 2003 / Accepted: 19 February 2003 / Published online: 7 May 2003     

First observation of medium-spin excitations in the <Superscript>138</Superscript>Cs nucleus

The Penning trap mass spectrometer JYFLTRAP, coupled to the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line (IGISOL) facility at Jyv?skyl?, was employed to measure the atomic masses of neutron-rich ^70-73Ni and ^{73, 75}Cu isotopes with a typical accuracy less than 5keV. The mass of ⁷³Ni was measured for the first time. Comparisons with the previous data are discussed. Two-neutron separation energies show a weak subshell closure at ⁶⁸ ₂₈Ni₄₀ . A well established proton shell gap is observed at Z = 28 .