Two-step gamma cascade decays from the compound state to the ground state of 182Ta nucleus

Abstract

Two-step gamma transitions corresponding to the decays from the compound state (6,062.93 keV) to the ground state of ¹⁸²Ta nucleus have been investigated via a ¹⁸¹Ta(n,γ)¹⁸²Ta reaction using the thermal neutron beam from the No.3 neutron channel of the Dalat Nuclear Research Reactor and a gamma-gamma coincidence spectrometer. By comparing with data extracted from the Evaluated Nuclear Structure Data File (ENSDF) library, the authors have determined the order of 20 pairs of gamma cascade transitions, and then constructed a corresponding partial nuclear level scheme of ¹⁸²Ta. Based on the detected gamma transitions and levels, 17 primary transitions, 1 secondary transition, and 20 intermediate levels are found to be the same as those in the ENSDF. The remaining 3 primary transitions and 19 secondary transitions are, thus, considered as the new data. In addition, a tentative spin range of [2, 3, 4] ℏ. has been assigned to all the intermediate levels detected within the present work.