In-beam conversion-electron spectroscopy of ^{180}Hg

Excited states in {sup 180}Hg were populated using the {sup 147}Sm({sup 36}Ar,3n){sup 180}Hg reaction and studied by in-beam conversion-electron spectroscopy. Conversion electrons emitted at the target position were measured using the Silicon Array for Conversion Electron Detection (SACRED) spectrometer and tagged through the characteristic {alpha} decays of {sup 180}Hg detected in a position-sensitive silicon strip detector located at the focal plane of the gas-filled recoil separator Recoil Ion Transport Unit (RITU). Electron conversion of transitions previously assigned to {sup 180}Hg through in-beam {gamma}-ray spectroscopy studies was identified up to the 10{sup +}{yields}8{sup +} transition and the intensities of the conversion-electron transitions were found to be consistent with the previous multipolarity assignments. Evidence was also found for two highly converted transitions in {sup 180}Hg: a 167 keV transition is interpreted as the transition from the newly identified 2{sub 2}{sup +} state at 601 keV to the 2{sub 1}{sup +} state at 434 keV, while a 420 keV transition is assigned as the E0 decay from the 0{sup +} bandhead of the prolate-deformed configuration to the weakly deformed ground state.