6533b86ffe1ef96bd12cd12a

RESEARCH PRODUCT

High-Kfour-quasiparticle states inGd138

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States above the known ${K}^{\ensuremath{\pi}}={8}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ 6 $\ensuremath{\mu}$s isomer in $^{138}\mathrm{Gd}$ have been populated with the $^{106}\mathrm{Cd}$($^{36}\mathrm{Ar}$,$2p2n$) reaction at a beam energy of 180 MeV at the University of Jyv\"askyl\"a, Finland. The recoil-isomer tagging technique was utilized to correlate delayed $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray decays, detected in the GREAT focal plane spectrometer, with prompt decays measured in the JUROGAM II spectrometer at the target position. The lifetime of the ${K}^{\ensuremath{\pi}}={8}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ isomeric state has been remeasured as 6.2(2) $\ensuremath{\mu}$s. Two high-lying strongly coupled bands have been established with ${K}^{\ensuremath{\pi}}\ensuremath{\geqslant}{12}^{\ensuremath{-}}$. Potential-energy surface calculations, in conjunction with $g$ factor measurements, reveal that they are built upon four-quasiparticle structures comprising two-quasineutron plus two-quasiproton configurations. The short half-life or lack of hindrance for the decays from these four-quasiparticle band-head states is reasoned to be a consequence of increased triaxial deformation and mixing due to the high density of states relative to the lower two-quasiparticle 6-$\ensuremath{\mu}$s isomeric state.