Revealing the Nature of yrast States in Neutron-Rich Polonium Isotopes

Polonium isotopes having two protons above the shell closure at Z=82 show a wide variety of low-lying, high-spin isomeric states across the whole chain. The structure of neutron-deficient isotopes up to ^{210}Po (N=126) is well established as they are easily produced through various methods. However, there is not much information available for the neutron-rich counterparts for which only selective techniques can be used for their production. We report on the first fast-timing measurements of yrast states up to the 8^{+} level in ^{214,216,218}Po isotopes produced in the β^{-} decay of ^{214,216,218}Bi at ISOLDE, CERN. In particular, our new half-life value of 607(14) ps for the 8_{1}^{+} state in ^{214}Po is nearly 20 times shorter than the value available in the literature and comparable with the newly measured half-lives of 409(16) and 628(25) ps for the corresponding 8_{1}^{+} states in ^{216,218}Po, respectively. The measured B(E2;8_{1}^{+}→6_{1}^{+}) transition probability values follow an increasing trend relative to isotope mass, reaching a maximum for ^{216}Po. The increase contradicts the previous claims of isomerism for the 8^{+} yrast states in neutron-rich ^{214}Po and beyond. Together with the other measured yrast transitions, the B(E2) values provide a crucial test of the different theoretical approaches describing the underlying configurations of the yrast band. The new experimental results are compared to shell-model calculations using the KHPE and H208 effective interactions and their pairing-modified versions, showing an increase in configuration mixing when moving toward the heavier isotopes.

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Publication Details

Journal
Physical Review Letters
Published
2025-02-05
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.134.052502
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Nuclear physics research studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.74

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article

Revealing the Nature of yrast States in Neutron-Rich Polonium Isotopes

K. Rezynkina, L. J. Harkness-Brennan, H. O. U. Fynbo, R. Mărginean et al.
2 citations
Physical Review Letters
Nuclear physics research studies
3.74
article

Revealing the Nature of yrast States in Neutron-Rich Polonium Isotopes

K. Rezynkina, L. J. Harkness-Brennan, H. O. U. Fynbo, R. Mărginean, A. Algora, V. Pucknell, Á. Perea, J. Benito, O. Tengblad, S. Antalic, N. Mărginean, M. Huýse, D. S. Judson, R. Lică, C. Mihai, B. Andel, R. E. Mihai, A. Blazhev, N. Warr, V. Sánchez-Tembleque, L. M. Fraile, A. N. Andreyev, Pavol Mošat’, M. J. G. Borge, J. R. Murias, J. G. Cubiss, P. Van Duppen, P. T. Greenlees, P. Rahkila, J. Jolie, A. Illana, G. Benzoni, H. Naïdja, V. Vedia, K. Schomacker, C. Costache, M. Stryjczyk, M. Madurga, R. D. Page, T. Berry, E. Nácher, I. Lazarus, H. De Witte, A. Negreţ, C. Sürder, J. Konki
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Polonium isotopes having two protons above the shell closure at Z=82 show a wide variety of low-lying, high-spin isomeric states across the whole chain. The structure of neutron-deficient isotopes up to ^{210}Po (N=126) is well established as they are easily produced through various methods. However, there is not much information available for the neutron-rich counterparts for which only selective techniques can be used for their production. We report on the first fast-timing measurements of yrast states up to the 8^{+} level in ^{214,216,218}Po isotopes produced in the β^{-} decay of ^{214,216,218}Bi at ISOLDE, CERN. In particular, our new half-life value of 607(14) ps for the 8_{1}^{+} state in ^{214}Po is nearly 20 times shorter than the value available in the literature and comparable with the newly measured half-lives of 409(16) and 628(25) ps for the corresponding 8_{1}^{+} states in ^{216,218}Po, respectively. The measured B(E2;8_{1}^{+}→6_{1}^{+}) transition probability values follow an increasing trend relative to isotope mass, reaching a maximum for ^{216}Po. The increase contradicts the previous claims of isomerism for the 8^{+} yrast states in neutron-rich ^{214}Po and beyond. Together with the other measured yrast transitions, the B(E2) values provide a crucial test of the different theoretical approaches describing the underlying configurations of the yrast band. The new experimental results are compared to shell-model calculations using the KHPE and H208 effective interactions and their pairing-modified versions, showing an increase in configuration mixing when moving toward the heavier isotopes.

Physical Review LettersVol. 134(5)
Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES), University Frères Mentouri Constantine 1 (DZ), University of Liverpool (GB), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (IT), Universitat de València (ES), University of Cologne (DE), HUN-REN Institute for Nuclear Research (HU), Aarhus University (DK), University of Surrey (GB), Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien (FR), Technische Universität Darmstadt (DE), Horia Hulubei National Institute for R and D in Physics and Nuclear Engineering (RO), Institut Laue-Langevin (FR), Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro (IT), Instituto de Estructura de la Materia (ES), Université Constantine 2 (DZ), University of York (GB), Université de Strasbourg (FR), Comenius University Bratislava (SK), University of Tennessee at Knoxville (US), University of Jyväskylä (FI), KU Leuven (BE)
CERN, Academy of Finland, Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, Fonds De La Recherche Scientifique - FNRS, Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, KU Leuven, Agentúra na Podporu Výskumu a Vývoja, Vedecká Grantová Agentúra MŠVVaŠ SR a SAV, Vlaamse regering, Institutul de Fizică Atomică, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Agencia Estatal de Investigación
Openalex Percentile: Top 9%
Nuclear physics research studies
3.74
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