Production and spectroscopy of the neutron-rich nucleus 166Dy

Abstract

Yrast states up to spin $16\ensuremath{\Elzxh}$ in ${}^{166}\mathrm{Dy}$ were observed, for the first time, using a quasielastic neutron-transfer reaction in the bombardment of ${}^{118}\mathrm{Sn}$ with ${}^{164}\mathrm{Dy}$ at ${E}_{\mathrm{lab}}=790$ MeV. The ratio of the ${}^{166}\mathrm{Dy}$ production cross section relative to the inelastic cross section, integrated over the c.m. scattering angle range $110\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}$ to $140\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}$, is $\ensuremath{\approx}0.0027$. This experiment demonstrates that the improved sensitivity, provided by the new generation of highly segmented $4\ensuremath{\pi}$ $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray arrays coupled to a $4\ensuremath{\pi}$ heavy-ion detector array, makes subbarrier heavy-ion-induced nucleon-transfer reactions a powerful probe of the structure of neutron-rich nuclei at moderately high spin. A comparison with the production of ${}^{164}\mathrm{Dy}$ in the reaction between ${}^{118}\mathrm{Sn}$ and ${}^{162}\mathrm{Dy}$ is made.