The atomic level structure of the element fermium was investigated for the first time using a sample of 2.7x10(10) atoms of the isotope 255Fm with a half-life of 20.1 h. The atoms were evaporated from a filament and stored in the argon buffer gas of an optical cell. Atomic levels were sought by the method of resonance ionization spectroscopy using an excimer-dye-laser combination. Two atomic levels were found at wave numbers (25 099.8+/-0.2) and (25 111.8+/-0.2) cm(-1). Partial transition rates to the 5f(12)7s(2) (3)H(e)(6) ground state have been determined from their saturation characteristics. Multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock calculations suggest that the leading orders of these levels could be the 5f(12)7s7p (5)I(o)(6) and 5f(12)7s7p (5)G(o)(5) terms.

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The level scheme and hyperfine structure of the element fermium (Z = 100) has been investigated with the method of resonance ionization spectroscopy in a buffer gas cell. The experiments were carried out on a 46 pg sample of the isotope 255 Fm with a half-life time of 20.1 h, produced in the high flux nuclear reactor of the ORNL, Oak Ridge, USA. A wave number scan from 27,100 to 28,400 cm j1 was carried through to search for three levels with large Einsteincoefficients, as predicted by ab initio Multi-Configuration-Dirac-Fock (MCDF) calculations, and five new levels were found. In addition, the two known levels at wave numbers (25,099.8 T 0.2) and (25,111.8 T 0.2) cm j1 were studied with a laser band width of 1.5 GHz and hyperfine broadenings were observed.

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