PHYSICAL REVIEW C 101, 044313 (2020) New level scheme and shell model description of 212 Rn C. B. Li (), 1 G. L. Zhang () , 2, 3 , * C. X. Yuan (), 4 G. X. Zhang (), 5, 6 S. P. Hu (), 7 W. W. Qu (), 8 Y. Zheng (), 1 H. Q. Zhang (), 1 D. Mengoni, 5, 6 D. Testov, 5, 6 J. J. Valiente-Dobón, 9 H. B. Sun (), 7 N. Wang (), 7 X. G. Wu (), 1 G. S. Li (), 1 M. Mazzocco, 5, 6 A. Gozzelino, 9 C. Parascandolo, 10 D. Pierroutsakou, 10 M. La Commara, 10, 11 F. Recchia, 5, 6 A. I. Sison, 9 S. Bakes, 9 I. Zanon, 9 S. Aydin, 12 and D. Bazzacco 5, 6 1 China Institute of Atomic Energy, Beijing 102413, China 2 School of Physics, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China 3 Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Big Data-Based Precision Medicine, School of Medicine and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, China and Key Laboratory of Big Data-Based Precision Medicine (Beihang University), Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing 100191, China 4 Sino-French Institute of Nuclear Engineering and Technology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai 519082, China 5 Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia dell’Universita di Padova, I-35131 Padova, Italy 6 Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Padova, I-35131 Padova, Italy 7 College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China 8 School of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Medical College of Soochow University, Soochow 215123, China 9 INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, I-35020 Legnaro, Italy 10 INFN-Sezione di Napoli, via Cintia, I-80126 Napoli, Italy 11 Dipartimento di Farmacia, Università di Napoli “Federico II”, via D. Montesano, I-80131 Napoli, Italy 12 Department of Physics, University of Aksaray, 68100 Aksaray, Turkey (Received 28 November 2019; accepted 24 March 2020; published 20 April 2020) Level structures of 212 Rn have been studied by in-beam γ -ray spectroscopic methods using the 209 Bi( 6 Li, 3n) 212 Rn reaction at beam energies of 28, 30, and 34 MeV. A number of new nonyrast states based on π h 4 9/2 and π h 3 9/2 f 7/2 configurations have been identified. A 3 () collective state is also proposed at 2121 keV, which is most likely formed by mixing the octupole vibration with the 3 member of the π h 3 9/2 i 13/2 multiplet. The level scheme is compared with large-scale shell model calculations and discussed in terms of excitations of valence protons and without contributions from the 208 Pb core. An overall excellent agreement is obtained for states that can be described in this model space. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.101.044313 I. INTRODUCTION For many years, the spherical nuclei near the doubly closed shell nucleus 208 82 Pb 126 have provided a laboratory in the heavy- element region in which the large-scale shell model had been confronted by experiment [1,2]. Therefore, it is particularly important to have complete experimental data in this mass region. A large amount of information on nuclei near 208 Pb has been obtained through a wide variety of experiments. Nevertheless, there are many gaps in the data. The nucleus 212 Rn, with its relatively simple structure of a closed neutron core, has four valence protons outside the doubly closed shell 208 Pb core, provides a convenient system of nuclei for testing the study of both low- and high- spin states, and has received much attention in the past few decades. The first study [3,4] of the high-spin level structure of 212 Rn used the 204 Hg( 13 C, 5n) 212 Rn reaction to establish the basic structure of the nucleus to an excitation energy of about * zgl@buaa.edu.cn 8.5 MeV, some involving double neutron core excitations. Afterwards, a number of isomers and high-lying γ -ray tran- sitions were observed [57]. Recently, Dracoulis et al. [8,9], using the 204 Hg( 13 C, 5n) 212 Rn and the 198 Pt( 18 O4n) 212 Rn reactions, extended the level scheme to higher spin (39¯ h), with an excitation energy in excess of 13 MeV, covering states formed by aligned valence protons combined with single, double, and triple neutron-core excitations. These were interpreted in terms of both the empirical shell model (ESM) and the deformed independent particle model (DIPM). Life- times, g-factors and magnetic moments were also measured by different groups and interpreted them in terms of diverse microcosmic model [4,1013,15]. To sum up, previous studies of the in-beam γ -ray spectroscopy have provided some details on the energies and decay characteristics of intermediate-high spin states in 212 Rn. However, these studies have produced no information at all about the levels of π h 2 9/2 f 2 7/2 configuration, for the π h 3 9/2 f 7/2 and π h 3 9/2 i 13/2 configurations with J 6, the data are inadequate or nonexistent, and particularly there is absence of the extremely interesting collective 3 state. Therefore, much more low-lying information is needed about 2469-9985/2020/101(4)/044313(10) 044313-1 ©2020 American Physical Society