Investigation of the Δn = 0 selection rule in Gamow-Teller transitions : The β-decay of 207Hg

Gamow-Teller β decay is forbidden if the number of nodes in the radial wave functions of the initial and final states is different. This Δn = 0 requirement plays a major role in the β decay of heavy neutron-rich nuclei, affecting the nucleosynthesis through the increased half-lives of nuclei on the astrophysical r-process pathway below both Z = 50 (for N > 82) and Z = 82 (for N >126). The level of forbiddenness of the Δn = 1ν1g9/2 → π0g7/2 transition has been investigated from the β− decay of the ground state of 207Hg into the single-proton-hole nucleus 207Tl in an experiment at the ISOLDE Decay Station. From statistical observational limits on possible γ-ray transitions depopulating the π0…

Recoil isomer tagging in the proton-rich odd-odd N = 77 isotones, 142Tb and 144Ho

A fusion-evaporation reaction has been employed to search for isomeric states in the near-proton drip-line N577 isotones, 65 142Tb and 67 144Ho. The recoiling nuclei were implanted into a silicon detector at the focal plane of a gas-filled separator, where a recoil isomer tagging technique was employed to correlate prompt and delayed g-ray transitions across isomeric states. New states were observed to be built upon a known 15-ms isomer in 142Tb and the feeding and decay of a new 500(20)-ns isomeric state was established in 144Ho. This measurement represents the first observation of excited states in 144Ho. The behavior of the new states above the isomers suggests that they are built upon l…

Recoil isomer tagging in the proton-rich odd-oddN=77isotones, 65142Tband 67144Ho

β-Delayed and isomer spectroscopy of neutron-rich Ta and W isotopes

Decays of neutron-rich A ~ 190 nuclei have been studied following projectile fragmentation of a 208Pb beam on a 9Be target at the GSI Fragment Separator. Gamma-ray decays from previously reported isomeric states in 188Ta, 190W and 192, 193Re were used as internal calibrations for the particle identification analysis, together with the identification of previously unreported isomeric decays in 189Ta and 191W. The current work also identifies β-delayed γ rays following the decay of 188Ta to 188W for the first time. Algora, Alejandro, Alejandro.Algora@ific.uv.es ; Molina Palacios, Francisco Manuel, Francisco.Molina@ific.uv.es; Rubio Barroso, Berta, Berta.Rubio@ific.uv.es

β-delayedγ-ray spectroscopy of203,204Au and200−202Pt

The beta decay of five heavy, neutron-rich nuclei, Pt-203,Pt-204 and Ir200-202, has been investigated following relativistic cold fragmentation reactions of lead projectiles using the FRS + RISING setup at GSI. This paper reports on the study of the low-lying states in the decay daughter nuclei Au-203,Au-204 and Pt200-202. The characteristic gamma rays for each nucleus have been determined using beta-delayed gamma-ray spectroscopy. Tentative level schemes, relative intensities, and apparent beta feedings are provided. These data are compared with shell-model calculations, which indicate a substantial contribution to the total beta strength from high-energy first-forbidden beta-decay transit…

Reinvestigation of the excited states in the proton emitter $^{151}$Lu: particle-hole excitations across the $N=Z=64$ subshell

The excited states of the proton emitter $^{151}$Lu were reinvestigated in a recoil-decay tagging experiment at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyv\"askyl\"a (JYFL). The level scheme built on the ground state of $^{151}$Lu was updated with five new $\gamma$-ray transitions. Large-scale shell model calculations were carried out to interpret the experimental level scheme. It is found that the excitation energies of states above the $27/2^-$ and $23/2^+$ isomeric levels can be sensitive to excitations from $g_{7/2}$ and $d_{5/2}$ to single-particle orbitals above $N=Z=64$.

Octupole states in Tl207 studied through β decay

The β decay of 207Hg into the single-proton-hole nucleus 207Tl has been studied through γ-ray spectroscopy at the ISOLDE Decay Station (IDS) with the aim of identifying states resulting from coupling of the πs−11/2, πd−13/2, and πh−111/2 shell model orbitals to the collective octupole vibration. Twenty-two states were observed lying between 2.6 and 4.0 MeV, eleven of which were observed for the first time, and 78 new transitions were placed. Two octupole states (s1/2-coupled) are identified and three more states (d3/2-coupled) are tentatively assigned using spin-parity inferences, while further h11/2-coupled states may also have been observed for the first time. Comparisons are made with st…

Multipleβ−decaying states in194Re: Shape evolution in neutron-rich osmium isotopes

decays from heavy, neutron-rich nuclei with A∼190 have been investigated following their production via the relativistic projectile fragmentation of an E/A=1 GeV 208Pb primary beam on a ∼2.5 g/cm2 9Be target. The reaction products were separated and identified using the GSI FRagment Separator (FRS) and stopped in the RISING active stopper. γ decays were observed and correlated with these secondary ions on an event-by-event basis such that γ-ray transitions following from both internal (isomeric) and β decays were recorded. A number of discrete, β-delayed γ-ray transitions associated with β decays from 194Re to excited states in 194Os have been observed, including previously reported decays …

High-resolution γ-ray spectroscopy: a versatile tool for nuclear β-decay studies at TRIUMF-ISAC

High-resolution γ-ray spectroscopy is essential to fully exploit the unique, high-quality beams available at the next generation of radioactive ion beam facilities such as the TRIUMF isotope separator and accelerator (ISAC). The 8π spectrometer, which consists of 20 Compton-suppressed HPGe detectors, has recently been reconfigured for a vigorous research programme in weak interaction and nuclear structure physics. With the addition of a variety of ancillary detectors it has become the world's most powerful device dedicated to β-decay studies. This paper provides a brief overview of the apparatus and highlights from recent experiments.

Recoil-isomer tagging techniques at RITU

Techniques have been developed to study isomeric states in nuclei with the use of RITU (gas filled separator) at the University of Jyvaskyla. The first was the recoil-isomer tagging technique initially, utilised by D.M. Cullen to study the K π = 8− isomeric state in 138Gd [1]. The juro-sphere array was employed in conjunction with ritu and a focal plane array which consisted of several Compton-suppressed Germanium detectors, placed in close geometry around a multi wire proportional counter (mwpc) and a silicon strip detector used for the implantation of recoiling nuclei. This technique correlates prompt and delayed γ-ray transitions across isomeric states and identifies the lifetime of the …

Decay of theN=126, Fr213nucleus

gamma rays following the EC/beta(+) and alpha decay of the N = 126, Fr-213 nucleus have been observed at the CERN isotope separator on-line (ISOLDE) facility with the help of gamma-ray and conversion-electron spectroscopy. These gamma rays establish several hitherto unknown excited states in Rn-213. Also, five new a-decay branches from the Fr-213 ground state have been discovered. Shell model calculations have been performed to understand the newly observed states in Rn-213.

βDelayed γRay spectroscopy of heavy neutron rich nuclei “south” of lead

Relativistic projectile fragmentation of a 208Pb primary beam has been used to produce neutron-rich nuclei with proton-holes relative to the Z = 82 shell closure, i.e., “south” of Pb. βDelayed γRay spectroscopy allows to investigate the structural properties of such nuclei with A ~ 195 → 205. The current work presents transitions de-exciting excited states in 204Au, which are the first spectroscopic information on this N = 125 isotone. Agramunt Ros, Jorge, Jorge.Agramunt@ific.uv.es ; Algora, Alejandro, Alejandro.Algora@ific.uv.es ; Molina Palacios, Francisco Manuel, Francisco.Molina@ific.uv.es ; Rubio Barroso, Berta, Berta.Rubio@ific.uv.es

βdecay of102Y produced in projectile fission of238U

The population of 102Zr following the β decay of 102Y produced in the projectile fission of 238U at the GSI facility in Darmstadt, Germany has been studied. 102Y is known to ß decay into 102Zr via two states, one of high spin and the other low spin. These states preferentially populate different levels in the 102Zr daughter. In this paper the intensities of transitions in 102Zr observed are compared with those from the decay of the low-spin level studied at the TRISTAN facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory and of the high-spin level studied at the JOSEF separator at the Kernforschungsanlage Jülich.

Structures ofPo201andRn205from EC/β+-decay studies

Several low-lying excited states in {sub 86}{sup 205}Rn{sub 119} and {sub 84}{sup 201}Po{sub 117} were identified for the first time following EC/{beta}{sup +} decay of {sup 205}Fr and {sup 201}At, respectively, using {gamma}-ray and conversion electron spectroscopy at the CERN isotope separator on-line (ISOLDE) facility. The EC/{beta}{sup +} branch from {sup 205}Fr was measured to be 1.5(2)%. The excited states of the daughter nuclei are understood in terms of the odd nucleon coupling to the neighboring even-even core. The neutron single-particle energies of the p{sub 3/2} orbital relative to the f{sub 5/2} ground state in {sup 205}Rn, and the f{sub 5/2} orbital relative to the p{sub 3/2} …

Reinvestigation of the excited states in the proton emitter 151Lu : Particle-hole excitations across the N=Z=64 subshell

The excited states of the proton emitter 151Lu were reinvestigated in a recoil-decay tagging experiment at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyväskylä (JYFL). The level scheme built on the ground state of 151Lu was updated with five new γ -ray transitions. Large-scale shell model calculations were carried out in the model space consisting of the neutron and proton orbitals 0g7/2, 1d5/2, 1d3/2, 2s1/2, and 0h11/2 with the optimized monopole interaction in order to interpret the experimental level scheme of 151Lu. It is found that the excitation energies of states above the 27/2− and 23/2+ isomeric levels in 151Lu can be sensitive to excitations from g7/2 and d5/2 to single-parti…

Angular momentum population in fragmentation reactions

Neutron-deficient nuclei with N = 126 have been populated following projectile fragmentation of a 238U beam with energy 1 GeV/A. The decay of several previously reported isomers has been measured. This will allow us to calculate high-spin isomeric ratios and compare them with model calculations to allow a better understanding of the reaction mechanism. Algora, Alejandro, Alejandro.Algora@ific.uv.es ; Molina Palacios, Francisco Manuel, Francisco.Molina@ific.uv.es ; Rubio Barroso, Berta, Berta.Rubio@ific.uv.es

Competition between Allowed and First-Forbidden β Decay: The Case of Hg208→Tl208

The β decay of ^{208}Hg into the one-proton hole, one neutron-particle _{81}^{208}Tl_{127} nucleus was investigated at CERN-ISOLDE. Shell-model calculations describe well the level scheme deduced, validating the proton-neutron interactions used, with implications for the whole of the N>126, Z<82 quadrant of neutron-rich nuclei. While both negative and positive parity states with spin 0 and 1 are expected within the Q_{β} window, only three negative parity states are populated directly in the β decay. The data provide a unique test of the competition between allowed Gamow-Teller and Fermi, and first-forbidden β decays, essential for the understanding of the nucleosynthesis of heavy nuclei in…

Structure of N >= 126 nuclei produced in fragmentation of (238)U

The nuclear structure of neutron‐rich N⩾126 nuclei have been investigated following their production via relativistic projectile fragmentation of a E/A = 1 GeV 238U beam on a Be target. The cocktail of secondary beam products were separated and identified using the GSI FRagment Separator (FRS). The nuclei of interest were implanted in a high‐granularity active stopper detector set‐up consisting of 6 double sided silicon strip detectors. The associated gamma‐ray transitions were detected with the RISING array, consisting of 15 Euroball cluster Ge‐detectors. Time‐correlated gamma decays from individually identified nuclear species have been recorded, allowing the clean identification of isome…

Oblate Collectivity in the Yrast Structure of 194Pt

A deep inelastic reaction using a 460 MeV 82Se beam incident upon a thick 192Os target was performed at the Legnaro National Laboratory, Italy. The resulting γ-decays were measured using the GASP array. Results for 194Pt extend the known level scheme of the yrast structure from spin I = (12 ħ) to (20 ħ). The irregularities in the sequence of the new transition energies and total Routhian surface calculations show a breakdown in collectivity with an yrast oblate shape remaining to high spin. Rubio Barroso, Berta, Berta.Rubio@ific.uv.es