Evidence for the 2 + level in t~is obtained from the fldecay of l~ mass separated at the ISOLDE facility. The energy of 126 keV and the collectivity of the 2 + --*0 + transition indicate that t~ is a strongly deformed rigid rotor. In addition, a sizeable lifetime is measured for the 94 keV transition in ao~y. 27.60.+j,23.20.Lv The neutron-rich Sr isotopes exhibit unique properties. First, the ground-state deformation saturates at its onset in 9SSr60, with the unusually large value of the deformation parameter fl --0.40. Second, ground-state bands in 98St and l~176 on the one hand, and K : 3/2 bands in O9Sr and t~ on the other hand, have moments of inertia identical within 1%. These results have been reviewed briefly in [1,2]. The present measurement aimed at establishing the deformation and band structure in l~ located two neutrons before midshell.
PACS"The l~ activity was obtained as a fission product by bombarding a UC target with 1 GeV protons from the PS-booster. After diffusion from the thick target, the fission products were ionized by a surface-ionization source and the A :-102 isobars were separated at the General Purpose Separator. The acquisition was enabled during the first 200 ms following the proton pulse, which was impinging on the target at time intervals of 1.2 seconds (or an integer multiple of it). Most of the l~ activity (Wt/2 = 37 ms [3]) was presumed to be collected and detected during the acquisition window, while longer-lived daughter products would decay mostly outside of it. Moreover, between the acquisition periods, the separator beam was deflected in order to reduce the collection of elements with longer release times.The acquisition setup consisted of a small planar Ge-detector with excellent energy resolution and timing * Supportedby the Academy of Finland and the German BMFT properties (FWHM = 6 ns at 150 keV), a coaxial Gedetector and a thin plastic scintillator. Beta-gammatime and 7-7-time coincidences were recorded with the GOOSY multiparameter system of the nuclear chemistry group in Mainz. This setup is described in detail in a forthcoming paper [4]. The duration of the experiment was about 40 hours.
I. ResultsA signature for the production of the i~ activity was provided by its fl-delayed neutron decay via the observation of the 112-252 and 92-271 keV coincidence relationships assigned to the level scheme of 1~ [1,2]. The possibility of an A = 101 mass contamination has, however, to be discussed. The decay of 1~ can be monitored by the 2 + --~ 0 + transition of 129 keV in 1~176 The deduced limit for the 1~ activity does account for somewhat less than half of the observed intensity of the 271 keV transition in 1~ only, thus suggesting extra feeding from t~ decay. In addition to t~ t~ [5] and S3SrF beams [6] were observed with about 2 orders of magnitude more intensity. Other weaker contaminants were t~[5], doubly charged 2~[7] beams and emanations of Kr isotopes of various masses with a peak around A = 90 [8]. The intensities of the strongest activities are shown in figure 1....