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Using the fusion-evaporation reaction ^{96}Ru(^{58}Ni,p4n)^{149}Lu and the MARA vacuum-mode recoil separator, a new proton-emitting isotope ^{149}Lu has been identified. The measured decay Q value of 1920(20) keV is the highest measured for a ground-state proton decay, and it naturally leads to the shortest directly measured half-life of 450_{-100}^{+170} ns for a ground-state proton emitter. The decay rate is consistent with l_{p}=5 emission, suggesting a dominant πh_{11/2} component for the wave function of the proton-emitting state. Through nonadiabatic quasiparticle calculations it was concluded that ^{149}Lu is the most oblate deformed proton emitter observed to date.

The Mg24+C12 fusion reaction was used to perform a detailed γ-ray spectroscopy study of the astrophysically important nucleus Ar34. In particular, an experimental setup, coupling the advanced γ-ray tracking array GRETINA with the well-established Argonne fragment mass analyzer (FMA), was employed to obtain excitation energies and spin-parity assignments for excited states in Ar34, both above and below the proton separation energy. For the first time, an angular distribution analysis of in-beam γ rays from fusion-evaporation reactions, using a tracking array, has been performed and Coulomb energy differences of analog states in the T=1, A=34 mirror system, explored from 0 to 6 MeV. Furthermore, we present a comprehensive discussion of the astrophysical Cl33(p,γ) stellar reaction rate, together with implications for the identification of nova presolar grains from sulfur isotopic abundances., This work was supported by the U. S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Nuclear Physics, under Contract No. DEAC02-06CH11357 and Grants No. DEFG02- 94-ER40834, No. DEFG02-97-ER41041, No. DEFG02- 97-ER41043, No. DEFG02-94-ER40848, and No. DESC0014231. United Kingdom personnel were supported by the Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) and C.A. was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. J.J. acknowledges support from Spanish MINECO Grant No. AYA2017-86274-P, the E.U. FEDER funds, and AGAUR/Generalitat de Catalunya Grant No. SGR-661/2017. This research uses resources of ANL’s ATLAS facility, which is a DOE Office of Science User facility

The neutron-deficient gold (Z=79) isotopes in the vicinity of the neutron midshell N=104 provide prolific examples of shape coexistence and isomerism at low excitation energy. They can be probed via a number of different experimental techniques. In this study, two new isomeric states with half-lives of 294(7) and 373(9) ns have been observed in the neutron-deficient odd-odd nuclide 178Au (N=99) in an experiment at the RITU gas-filled separator at JYFL, Jyväskylä. This result was achieved due to the use of a segmented planar germanium detector with a high efficiency at low energies. By applying the recoil-decay tagging technique, they were assigned to decay to two different long-lived α-decaying states in 178Au. peerReviewed

International audience; Decay spectroscopy of $^{250}\mathrm{No}$ has been performed using digital electronics and pulse-shape analysis of the fast nuclear decays for the first time. Previous studies of $^{250}\mathrm{No}$ reported two distinct fission decay lifetimes, related to the direct fission of the ground state and to the decay of an isomeric state but without the possibility to determine if the isomeric state decayed directly via fission or via internal electromagnetic transitions to the ground state. The data obtained in the current experiment allowed the puzzle to finally be resolved, attributing the shorter half-life of $t_{1/2}=3.8 \pm 0.3 \mu s$ to the ground state and the longer half-life $t_{1/2}=34.9^{+3.9}_{-3.2} \mu s$ to the decay of an isomeric state. $^{250}\mathrm{No}$ becomes, thus, one of a very few examples of very heavy nuclei with an isomeric state living considerably longer than its ground state. This phenomenon has important consequences for the nuclear-structure models aiming to determine the borders of the island of stability of superheavy elements.

High-spin states in the N = 128 nucleus ²¹⁸Th have been investigated following fusion–evaporation reactions, using the recoil-decay tagging technique. Due to the short-lived nature of the ground state of ²¹⁸Th prompt γ rays have been correlated with the α decay of the daughter nucleus ²¹⁴Ra. The level scheme representing the decay of excited states has been extended to (16⁺) with the observation of six previously unreported transitions. The observations are compared with the results of shell model calculations and within the context of the systematics of neighbouring nuclei.

Lifetime measurements of excited states in 178 Hg have been performed using the 103 Rh ( 78 Kr , p 2 n ) reaction at a beam energy of 354 MeV. The recoil-decay tagging (RDT) technique was applied to select the 178 Hg nuclei and associate the prompt γ rays with the correlated characteristic ground-state α decay. Lifetimes of the four lowest yrast states of 178 Hg have been determined using the recoil distance Doppler-shift (RDDS) method. The experimental data are compared to theoretical predictions with focus on shape coexistence. The results confirm the shift of the deformed prolate structures to higher lying states but also indicate their increasing deformation with decreasing neutron number. peerReviewed

In the study of the odd-$Z$, even-$N$ nuclei $^{243}$Es and $^{249}$Md, performed at the University of Jyv\"askyl\"a, the fusion-evaporation reactions $^{197}$Au($^{48}$Ca,2$n$)$^{243}$Es and $^{203}$Tl($^{48}$Ca,2$n$)$^{249}$Md have been used for the first time. Fusion-evaporation residues were selected and detected using the RITU gas-filled separator coupled with the focal-plane spectrometer GREAT. For $^{243}$Es, the recoil decay correlation analysis yielded a half-life of $24 \pm 3$s, and a maximum production cross section of $37 \pm 10$ nb. In the same way, a half-life of $26 \pm 1$ s, an $\alpha$ branching ratio of 75 $\pm$ 5%, and a maximum production cross section of 300 $\pm$ 80 nb were determined for $^{249}$Md. The decay properties of $^{245}$Es, the daughter of $^{249}$Md, were also measured: an $\alpha$ branching ratio of 54 $\pm$ 7% and a half-life of 65 $\pm$ 6 s. Experimental cross sections were compared to the results of calculations performed using the KEWPIE2 statistical fusion-evaporation code.

Using fusion-evaporation reactions, a gas-filled recoil separator, recoil-gating technique and recoil-isomer decay tagging technique we have extended the level scheme of ²⁰³At (N = 118) significantly. We have observed an isomeric [τ=14.1(3)μs] state with a spin and parity of 29/2+. The isomeric state is suggested to originate from the π(h9/2)⊗∣∣²⁰²Po;11⁻⟩ coupling, and it is depopulated through 286 keV E2 and 366 keV E3 transitions. In addition, we have observed a cascade of magnetic-dipole transitions which is suggested to be generated by the shears mechanism.

The ground-state rotational band of the neutron-deficient californium ( Z = 98 ) isotope 244 Cf was identified for the first time and measured up to a tentative spin and parity of I π = 20 + . The observation of the rotational band indicates that the nucleus is deformed. The kinematic and dynamic moments of inertia were deduced from the measured γ -ray transition energies. The behavior of the dynamic moment of inertia revealed an up-bend due to a possible alignment of coupled nucleons in high- j orbitals starting at a rotational frequency of about ℏ ω = 0.20 MeV . The results were compared with the systematic behavior of the even-even N = 146 isotones as well as with available theoretical calculations that have been performed for nuclei in the region. peerReviewed

The evolution of collectivity with spin along the yrast line in the neutron-deficient nucleus 112Te has been studied by measuring the reduced transition probability of excited states in the yrast band. In particular, the lifetimes of the 4+ and 6+ excited states have been determined by using the recoil distance Doppler-shift method. The results are discussed using both large-scale shell-model and total Routhian surface calculations.

International audience; Lifetimes of the first excited 2+ states in the extremely neutron-deficient $^{162}$W and $^{164}$W nuclei have been measured using the recoil distance Doppler shift technique. Experimental B(E2) data for the isotopic chains of hafnium, tungsten, and osmium, from the midshell region near the β-stability line towards the N=82 closed shell and the most neutron-deficient nuclides, are compared with predictions of nuclear deformations and 21+→0g.s.+ reduced transition strengths from different classes of state-of-the-art theoretical model calculations. The results reveal striking differences and deficiencies in the predictive power of current nuclear structure models.

International audience; Excited states in the proton-unbound nuclide $^{177}$Au were populated in the $^92}$Mo($^{88}$Sr, p2n) reaction and identified using the Jurogam-II and GREAT spectrometers in conjunction with the RITU gas-filled separator at the University of Jyväskylä Accelerator Laboratory. A strongly coupled band and its decay path to the 11/2−α-decaying isomer have been identified using recoil-decay tagging. Comparisons with cranked Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (HFB) calculations based on Skyrme energy functionals suggest that the band has a prolate deformation and is based upon coupling the odd 1h11/2 proton hole to the excited 02+ configuration in the $^{178}$Hg core. Although these configurations might be expected to follow the parabolic trend of core Hg(02+) states as a function of neutron number, the electromagnetic decay paths from the strongly coupled band in $^{177}$Au are markedly different from those observed in the heavier isotopes above the midshell. This indicates that a significant change in the structure of the underlying A+1Hg core occurs below the neutron midshell.

In the present study, values have been measured in the 208,210Rn and 206Po nuclei through Coulomb excitation of re-accelerated radioactive beams in inverse kinematics at CERN-ISOLDE. These nuclei have been proposed to lie in, or at the boundary of the region where the seniority scheme should persist. However, contributions from collective excitations are likely to be present when moving away from the N=126 closed shell. Such an effect is confirmed by the observed increased collectivity of the transitions. Experimental results have been interpreted with the aid of theoretical studies carried out within the BCS-based QRPA framework. ispartof: European Physical Journal A, Hadrons and Nuclei vol:52 issue:11 status: published

Excited states in the odd-odd, highly neutron-deficient nucleus 166Re have been investigated via the 92Mo(78Kr, 3p1n) 166Re reaction. Prompt γ rays were detected by the JUROGAM II γ -ray spectrometer, and the recoiling fusion-evaporation products were separated by the recoil ion transport unit (RITU) gas-filled recoil separator and implanted into the Gamma Recoil Electron Alpha Tagging spectrometer located at the RITU focal plane. The tagging and coincidence techniques were applied to identify the γ -ray transitions in 166Re, revealing two collective, strongly coupled rotational structures, for the first time. The more strongly populated band structure is assigned to the πh11/2[514]9/2− ⊗ νi13/2[660]1/2+ Nilsson configuration, while the weaker structure is assigned to be built on a two-quasiparticle state of mixed πh11/2[514]9/2− ⊗ ν[h9/2f7/2]3/2− character. The configuration assignments are based on the electromagnetic characteristics and rotational properties, in comparison with predictions from total Routhian surface and particle-rotor model calculations. peerReviewed