Nanosecond-Scale Proton Emission from Strongly Oblate-Deformed ^{149}Lu

Using the fusion-evaporation reaction ^{96}Ru(^{58}Ni,p4n)^{149}Lu and the MARA vacuum-mode recoil separator, a new proton-emitting isotope ^{149}Lu has been identified. The measured decay Q value of 1920(20) keV is the highest measured for a ground-state proton decay, and it naturally leads to the shortest directly measured half-life of 450_{-100}^{+170} ns for a ground-state proton emitter. The decay rate is consistent with l_{p}=5 emission, suggesting a dominant πh_{11/2} component for the wave function of the proton-emitting state. Through nonadiabatic quasiparticle calculations it was concluded that ^{149}Lu is the most oblate deformed proton emitter observed to date.