Anomalous isomeric decays in 174Lu as a probe of K-mixing and interactions in deformed nuclei

Abstract

A Kπ=13+, 280 ns four-quasiparticle isomer in the odd-odd nucleus 174Lu has been identified and characterized. The isomer decays to both Kπ=7+ and Kπ=0+ rotational bands obtained from the parallel and antiparallel coupling of the proton 7/2+[404] and neutron 7/2+[633] orbitals. K mixing caused by particle-rotation coupling explains the anomalously fast transition rates to the 7+ band but those to the 0+ band are caused by a chance degeneracy between the isomer and a collective state, allowing the mixing matrix element for a large K difference to be deduced. Show more