(p148,t)146Gd reaction: Neutron states in Gd146

We have used the (p148,t)146Gd reaction with protons of 34.6 and 24.9 MeV to study levels in Gd146 below Ex=5.6 MeV. The radioactive target material was deposited on the carbon support foil from an isotope separator. Triton spectra were analyzed by a magnetic quadrupole-dipole-dipole-dipole spectrometer (Q3D) at 11 angles between 10°and 60°. By comparing the angular distributions with the results of distorted-wave Born approximation calculations we obtained definitive L-transfer values for 11 excited states, including a strongly populated 0+ state at 4534 keV, and approximate L values for about 50 additional states. A search for members of the two-octupole-phonon quartet of states expected to occur at 1/43.2 MeV of excitation (twice the single-phonon energy) revealed no convincing evidence of the 0+ component, but the 2+ component could be one of the four new 2+ states identified in this region. A comparison between the most strongly populated low-lying states of Sm142 in the (p144,t) reaction and states in the pairing-vibrational region of Gd146 reveals a possible set of states whose energies and (p,t) cross sections are in reasonable agreement with predictions of the harmonic pairing-vibration model.