High-spin μs isomeric states in 96Ag

The isomeric and β decays of the N=Z+2 nucleus ⁹⁶Ag were investigated at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. A cascade of γ-ray transitions originating from the deexcitation of a microsecond isomer was observed for the first time and was found in coincidence with two previously known transitions with energies of 470 and 667 keV. The isomeric half-life was determined as 1.45(7) μs, more precise than previously reported. The existence of a second, longer-lived microsecond isomer, associated with a 743-keV γ transition, is also proposed here. Shell model results within the (p_3/2p_1/2f_5/2g_9/2) model space, using the jj44b interaction, reproduced level energies and isomeric decay half-lives reasonably well.