Nuclear Structure of 124Xe Studied with beta+/EC-decay

Abstract

As part of a broader program to study the evolution of collectivity in the even-even nuclei above tin, a beta+/EC-decay measurement of 124Cs into 124Xe was made with the 8pi spectrometer at the TRIUMF-ISAC facility. A very high-statistics data set was collected and the gamma-gamma coincidence data were analyzed, greatly extending the 124Xe level scheme. Several weak E2 transitions into excited 0+ states in 124Xe were observed for the first time. The B(E2) transition strengths of such low-spin transitions are important in determining collective properties, currently poorly characterized in this neutron-deficient region. A new beta+/EC-decay branch from a high-spin 124Cs isomer was observed for the first time. Decay of the (7)+ isomer populates high-spin excited states in 124Xe that are otherwise inaccessible through the beta decay of the 1+ 124Cs ground state. Combining gamma-gamma and gamma-electron coincidence data, several new transitions in the isomeric decay of 124Cs have been observed.