Weak Coupling in 143 Nd

The high-spin states of 143Nd have been studied in the 130Te(18O, 5n)143Nd reaction at a beam energy of 80 MeV using techniques of in-beam γ-ray spectroscopy. Measurements of γ - γ - t coincidences, γ-ray angular distributions, and γ-ray linear polarizations were performed. A level scheme of 143Nd with spin and parity assignments up to 53/2+ is proposed. While a weak coupling model can explain the level structure up to the Jπ=39/2- state, this model can not reproduce the higher-lying states. Additionally, a new low-lying non-yrast level sequence in 143Nd was observed in the present work, which can be well described by the weak coupling of an i13/2 neutron to the 142Nd core nucleus.