Alpha-decay studies of the new isotopes 191At and 193At

Detailed alpha-decay studies have been performed for the neutron-deficient isotopes 191At and 193At. The nuclei were produced in fusion-evaporation reactions of 54Fe and 56Fe ions with a 141Pr target. The fusion products were separated in-flight using a gas-filled recoil separator and implanted into a position-sensitive silicon detector. The isotopes were identified using position, time and energy correlations between the implants and subsequent alpha-decays. Three alpha-decaying states were identified for 193At and two for 191At. The spin and parity of the initial states in the astatine isotopes were deduced based on unhindered alpha-decays to states in the bismuth daughter nuclei. In both astatine isotopes the 1/2+ intruder state was determined to be the ground state and a 7/2- state to be the first-excited state. In 193At the alpha-decay of the 13/2+ state was observed in coincidence with a previously known gamma-ray transition from the 13/2+ state in the corresponding daughter nucleus 189Bi. In 187Bi and 189Bi low-lying 7/2- states were observed for the first time via alpha-decay of the mother nuclei.