Shape coexistence in $^{68}$Ni
ORAL
Abstract
$^{68}$Ni has been a focus of recent work aiming to understand the apparent rapid development of collectivity along neutron-rich $N=$40 nuclei, but despite many studies, is not entirely understood. The decay of the first excited 0$^{+}$ state in $^{68}$Ni was investigated at the NSCL. Ions of $^{68}$Co were implanted into a planar germanium double-sided strip detector (GeDSSD). The beta decay of $^{68}$Co populated the first excited 0$^{+}$ state in $^{68}$Ni and within hundreds of nanoseconds the decay of the first excited 0$^{+}$ state was measured in the GeDSSD. Both the energy of the first excited 0$^{+}$ state and the electric monopole transition strength from the first excited 0$^{+}$ state were precisely determined. Comparisons to Monte Carlo Shell Model calculations suggest shape coexistence between spherical ground and oblate first excited 0$^{+}$ states in $^{68}$Ni. The experimental results and theoretical interpretation will be presented.
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