Highest spin discrete levels in 131,132Ce: Spin generation near the mesoscopic limit

The three superdeformed (SD) bands in 132Ce and the two SD bands in 131Ce have been extended to higher spin, following experiments with the Euroball IV spectrometer. The two SD bands in 131Ce have been linked together. However, despite the relatively high population intensity of the bands (up to 5% of the respective channel), it has not been possible to unambiguously link any of the five SD bands into the low-spin, normally deformed structures of 131,132Ce. At the highest spins (>60ℏ), some of the bands exhibit the characteristic behavior of smooth band termination, i.e., energetically costly angular-momentum generation near the finite mesoscopic limit. Configuration-dependent cranked Nilsson-Strutinsky calculations have been performed to suggest single-particle configurations for the SD bands and to investigate the possibility of termination in these bands.