T-band phenomena in 183Re

Abstact: High-spin states in ¹⁸³Re have been studied using the ¹⁷⁶Yb(¹¹B,4n) reaction at 52 and 57 MeV. Two high-K bands have been observed directly by a time-correlated γ-γ coincidence measurement. One of the bands is built on an isomeric K ^π=(25/2)⁺ state at E _x= 1908 keV with a half-life of 0.82(2) ms. The other band, assigned as K ^π=(29/2)⁻ at E _x= 2739 keV, decays to the (25/2)⁺ band. These bands are interpreted as three-quasiparticle structures, π(5/2)⁺[402] &⊗ν(9/2)⁺[624] ⊗ν(11/2)⁺[615] for the (25/2)⁺ band and π(9/2)⁻[514] ⊗ν(9/2)⁺[624] ⊗ν(11/2)⁺[615] for the (29/2)⁻ band. The K ^π= (29/2)⁻ band becomes strongly Coriolis mixed with increasing spin and is gradually changing into a low-K s-band structure. Received: 20 April 1998     

Low-spin states of doubly odd 182Au

Low-lying states in the odd-odd light gold isotope ¹⁸²Au have been populated by the β⁺/EC decay of the ¹⁸²Hg nuclei. Level energies, spin and parity values were determined using on-line γ-ray and e^- spectroscopy measurements. No isomeric state with a long half-life was found in the ¹⁸²Au nucleus. Spin and parity I ^π = 2⁺ can be very likely assigned to the ¹⁸²Au ground state. Received: 19 December 2000 / Accepted: 28 February 2001     

Isomeric states in 214Th and 213Th

Isomeric states in ²¹⁴Th and ²¹³Th were identified by means of γ -rays measured in delayed coincidence with the implanted evaporation residues. These were produced in irradiations of ¹⁶⁴Dy with ⁵⁴Cr projectiles and separated in-flight by the velocity filter SHIP. An isomeric state of I ^π = 8⁺ with a half-life of (1.24±0.12) μs was identified in ²¹⁴Th . The configuration π[1h _9/2 ⊗ 2f _7/2] was assigned to this state. An isomeric state with a half-life of (1.4±0.4) μs was observed in ²¹³Th . Tentatively it was assigned to an I ^π = 13/2⁺ state.     

Isomeric state of 80Y and its role in the astrophysical rp-process

A careful investigation of the isomeric transition of the long-lived state at 228.5 keV excitation energy in ⁸⁰Y has been done. The HIGISOL facility at the Jyv?skyl? isochronous cyclotron has been used. We used the electron magnetic transporter to prepare an appropriate source and to measure the electron spectra in clean background conditions. The measured internal conversion coefficient α_K = 0.50±0.07 allows unambiguous 1^- identification for the 228.5 keV first excited isomeric state in ⁸⁰Y. With a “bare" half-life of 6.8±0.5 s found in this work, this state is strongly populated in the rp-process during X-ray bursts and has therefore to be taken into account in X-ray burst model calculations. However, because of the similarity of the β-decay half-lives of isomeric and ground states, we find a maximum reduction in the effective β-decay lifetime of ⁸⁰Y of only 17±2%. Our results pave the way for a future investigation of the impact of the isomeric state on the “effective" ⁸⁰Y proton capture rate. Received: 14 March 2001 / Accepted: 10 July 2001     

The A = 51 mirror nuclei 51Fe and 51Mn

Eighteen previously unknown γ-ray transitions were identified in the T _z = - 1/2 nucleus ⁵¹Fe following the fusion-evaporation reaction ³²S(²⁸Si,2α1n)⁵¹Fe. The level scheme reaches the fully aligned I ^π = 27/2^- terminating state of the five holes in the f _7/2 shell. The 17/2^- state was found to be isomeric, and the lifetime was measured to be 2.87 ns. The mirror symmetry of ⁵¹Fe and ⁵¹Mn is discussed, and the level scheme of ⁵¹Fe is compared to shell-model calculations. Received: 20 July 2000 / Accepted: 1 August 2000     

Excited states of 154Tm

A high-spin level structure of the nucleus ¹⁵⁴Tm has been established for the first time up to 6.14 MeV. The ¹¹⁸Sn + ⁴⁰Ca reaction at 205 MeV associated with the recoil shadow method was used to identify the I ^π = (19)⁺ isomeric state at 2.74 MeV. In-beam γ-ray and conversion electron spectroscopy have been applied on the ¹⁴⁴Sm(¹⁴N, 4n)¹⁵⁴Tm reaction at 95 MeV to build the level scheme. The level structure of ¹⁵⁴Tm is compared to other structures observed in N = 85 neighbouring nuclei. Received: 4 January 2002 / Accepted: 15 March 2002     

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     

Discovery of a new long-lived isomeric state in 125Ce

A new long-lived isomeric state in the near proton dripline nucleus ¹²⁵Ce has been identified with Schottky mass spectrometry at GSI. The excitation energy E ^* = 103(12)keV and the decay time of 193(1)s have been obtained from a single stored fully ionized ^125m Ce⁵⁸⁺ ion. The data implies an E3 transition and a 1/2⁺ assignment for the spin of the isomer.     

The 130Nd↦130Pr↦130Ce decay chain revisited

An investigation of low-lying energy levels of ¹³⁰Pr and ¹³⁰Ce has been made via β-decay. The radioactive parent nuclei were produced via ^94,96Mo + ⁴⁰Ca reactions at 6.8 MeV/nucleon and transported by a He-jet system. Gamma-γ-t, γ-X-t, γ-e^--t coincidence measurements were performed. Internal conversion coefficients have been measured with a magnetic spectrometer. The new β-decay half-life of ¹³⁰Nd has been determined to be 21(3) s. A partial level scheme of ¹³⁰Pr at low-spin has been constructed. The β-decay of ¹³⁰Pr to ¹³⁰Ce suggests the existence of three β-instable isomeric states in ¹³⁰Pr, while only one half-life T _1/2 = 40(4) s has been measured. Based on the present work and low-lying excited states in neighbouring odd-mass nuclei, the spins and parities of isomeric states in ¹³⁰Pr are proposed to be 2⁺, (4,5)⁺ and (7,8^±). The ground state in ¹³⁰Pr is still undetermined. Received: 20 August 2001 / Accepted: 6 November 2001     

Rotational bands in the doubly odd 130Cs nucleus

The band structures built on the 5^- isomeric state ( T _1/2 = 3.46 m) in the doubly odd ¹³⁰Cs nucleus have been established up to I = 24? via the ¹²⁴Sn(¹¹B, 5n)¹³⁰Cs reaction. The previously observed bands based on the πh _11/2⊗νh _11/2, πg _7/2⊗νh _11/2 and πd _5/2⊗νh _11/2 configurations and a positive-parity side band with multiple connections to the α = 0 signature partner of the yrast πh _11/2⊗νh _11/2 band have been extended to higher spins. A new band based on the πh _11/2⊗νg _7/2 configuration is observed. The yrast πh _11/2⊗νh _11/2 band exhibits anomalous signature splitting whose magnitude decreases up to spin 15 and then increases without restoring the normal signature splitting. Received: 20 February 2001 / Accepted: 9 May 2001     

Investigation of prolate-oblate shape-coexistence in 74Kr

The atomic nucleus ⁷⁴Kr has been investigated using combined conversion-electron (CE) and γ-ray spectroscopy. In order to confirm the existence of the expected low-lying isomeric 0⁺ ₂ state, the possibility of an electric-monopole (E0) decay to the ground state was examined. The observation of an E0 transition at 508 keV allowed the determination of the mixing between coexisting prolate and oblate shapes. Received: 16 November 1998     

Identification of band structures in the 137La nucleus

High-spin states of ¹³⁷La have been investigated with the reaction ¹³⁰Te(¹¹B, 4n) at a beam energy of 50MeV. The level scheme of ¹³⁷La has been expanded with spin up to 33/2ℏ. Several new bands have been found in this nucleus. A band crossing in the band based on the 17/2^- level has been observed at a rotational frequency of ℏω ∼ 0.48MeV. From systematic comparison, this band crossing probably originates from the alignment of protons. One of the bands with strong M1 transitions is proposed as a collective oblate band ( γ ∼ -60^°).     

Identification of a high-K isomer in neutron-rich 185Ta

A t _1/2 > 1 ms, high-K isomeric state feeding a strongly coupled rotational band has been identified following the deep inelastic reaction ²³⁸ ₉₂U +¹⁸⁶ ₇₄W at 1600 MeV. Examination of γ-ray and X-ray data combined with a g-factor analysis derived from in-band branching ratios suggests the assignment of the new states to the neutron-rich nucleus ¹⁸⁵ ₇₃Ta. Received: 11 May 1999     

Electromagnetic decay of the 6+ isomer of102Rh

Conversion electrons, and X rays from¹⁰²Rh^m (6⁺,T _1/2=1057 d) have been studied. An electromagnetic branch (2.3±0.3) ·10^–3 feeding the¹⁰²Rh first excited state has been observed in the 6⁺ isomeric decay. The excitation energy of the 6⁺ isomer turns out to be 140.7 keV above the 2^– ground state.We wish to thank P. Del Carmine, M. Ottanelli, and A. Pecchioli for their skillful collaboration during the measurements and the Technical Staffs of LNS and LNL for operation of the Tandem Accelerators.     

Level structure of 99Rh at high spins

High spins states in ⁹⁹Rh were populated via the ⁶⁶Zn(³⁷Cl, 2p2n)⁹⁹Rh reaction at an incident beam energy of 130 MeV. Seventeen new transitions have been observed in the present study and the level scheme has now been extended up to a spin of J∼ 25ħ and an excitation energy of about E _x∼ 10 MeV. The observation of a positive parity E2 cascade based on the 9/2⁺ isomeric level is suggestive of collective behaviour in this nucleus up to high spins. Spherical shell model (within restricted model space) and Cranked shell model calculations were performed to obtain an insight into the observed level structure. The new collective band observed up to a spin of J∼ 25ħ is suggested to be based on (πg _9/2 ³) ⊗ (νg _7/2 ²) quasi-particle excitations. Received: 12 July 1999 / Revised version: 14 September 1999     

Spectroscopy of the neutron-deficient nuclide 171Pt

The decay out of the πh _11/2νh _11/2 band to the known low-energy levels in ¹³²La was studied using the reaction ¹⁰⁰Mo + ³⁶S at 160 MeV beam energy. The low-energy level scheme has been further developed and unambiguous spin and parity values have been assigned to the levels connecting the band to the 6^- isomeric state. According to the new level scheme the spins in the πh _11/2νh _11/2 band are shifted up by one unit compared to the earlier tentative experimental values. The obtained new spins prove the existence of signature inversion in ¹³²La and give further support to the spin assignments made for the πh _11/2νh _11/2 bands in the neighbouring odd-odd La isotopes from level energy systematics. Received: 7 May 2002 / Accepted: 31 October 2002 / Published online: 17 January 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: timar@atomki.hu RID="b" ID="b"Present address: Dipartimento di Matematica e Fisica, Università di Camerino, via Madonna delle Carceri, I-62032 Camerino, Italy. Communicated by J. ?yst?     

Evidence for an isomeric 3/2- state in 53Co

The fragmentation of a 550MeV/u primary beam of ⁵⁸Ni on a ⁹Be target has been used to measure time- and energy-correlated γ decays following the implantation of event-by-event discriminated secondary fragments into a ⁹Be stopper plate. A new isomeric γ decay with T _1/2 = 14( ) ns and E _γ = 646.2(2) keV is observed and attributed to the decay of the yrast 3/2^- state in ⁵³ ₂₇Co₂₆ . This short-lived isomeric state has been populated by means of nuclear reactions during the stopping process of the secondary fragments. The experimental findings are discussed in the framework of large-scale spherical shell model calculations in conjunction with isospin symmetry-breaking residual interactions for the A = 53 , T _z = ±1/2 mirror nuclei ⁵³Co and ⁵³Fe .     

Structure of low-spin states in the doubly-odd 182Ir nucleus

Low-spin states of ¹⁸²Ir were populated through the β⁺ /EC decay of ¹⁸²Pt . Two strong E2 transitions were observed for the first time: a 25.7keV transition in ¹⁸²Ir and a 34.0keV transition in Re of probable mass A = 178 . Spin and parity, I ^π = 3⁺ , are firmly assigned to the ¹⁸²Ir ground state (g.s.). For the excited states, the parity is established and the spin determined or restricted. These assignments support most of the interpretations of the level structure previously suggested. The systematics for the known 5⁺ → 3⁺ transitions in π h _9/2 ⊗ ν 1/2^-[521] bands is presented. Using a semi-microscopic two-quasiparticle axial-rotor coupling model, particle configurations have been attributed or suggested for most of the coupled states lying at low energy in ¹⁸²Ir .     

Isomer-tagged differential-plunger measurements in proton-unbound Ho

The lifetime of an excited state above a weakly populated isomer in the proton-unbound odd–odd nucleus ¹⁴⁴Ho has been measured using the recoil distance Doppler shift method. This measurement represents the first differential-plunger lifetime measurement to utilize recoil-isomer tagging. The first excited Iπ=(¹⁰⁺)$I^{\pi }=({10}^{+})$ state above the two-quasiparticle πh_11/2⊗νh_11/2(⁸⁺)$\pi h_{11/2}\otimes \nu h_{11/2}(8^{+})$ isomer was determined to have a lifetime of τ=6(1) ps$\tau =6(1)\text{ps}$. Potential energy surface calculations, based on the configuration-constrained blocking method, predict the isomeric state to have γ  -soft triaxial-nuclear shape with |γ|≈24°$|\gamma |\approx 24\text{°}$. The lifetime of the (¹⁰⁺)$({10}^{+})$ state can be understood from these calculations if there is a degree of rotational alignment in this band, with the K value being lower than the bandhead spin. However, the validity of the K quantum number with large predicted triaxiality and gamma softness requires further theoretical study.     

A study of 223Ra populated by α-decay

The low spin states of ²²³Ra have been populated via α-decay from ²²⁷Th which was itself produced following β⁻ decay of an ²²⁷Ac source. α–γ and α−e _K,L,M angular correlation measurements have been analysed using the correct ground state spins of ²²⁷Th(=1/2⁺) and ²²³Ra(=3/2⁺) for the first time. The analysis has allowed unique J^π values to be assigned to almost all levels below 400 keV excitation in ²²³Ra. Values of (g _K−g _R)/Q ₀ have been deduced for several members of the K= 3/2^± bands (for the first time in an odd N nucleus in this mass region) allowing estimates of g _K and g _R to be extracted. The values of g _K and g _R are not significantly different for the positive and negative parity band members and tend to support other strong evidence that stable octupole deformation exists in ²²³Ra at low excitation energies. Received: 17 November 1997 / Revised version: 8 January 1998