Spectrum Of Gamma-Rays Connecting Superdeformed And Normal States In Hg-192

The complete spectrum of gamma rays following the decay of superdeformed (SD) states in Hg-192 has been extracted. The spectrum, which comprises a quasicontinuous component and sharp lines, reveals the decay mechanism and defines the excitation energies of the SD band. The decay of SD states results from the coupling between a cold, ordered SD system with a hot, chaotic one with normal deformation.