The ${\mathit{K}}^{\mathrm{\pi }}$=$8^{\mathrm{-}}$ isomer at 1147.4 keV in ${}_{}{}^{178}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Hf}$ was populated in a Coulomb excitation experiment with ${}_{}{}^{130}{}_{}{}^{}\mathrm{Te}$ ions. The measured cross section for this isomer was 2.7${\pm }_{1.4}^{1.9}$, 4.3${\pm }_{2.0}^{3.4}$, and 7.5${\pm }_{3.2}^{6.1}$ mb for three beam energies below the Coulomb barrier, namely 560, 590, and 620 MeV. If one assumes that the projection of the total angular momentum on the symmetry axis, K, is only an approximate quantum number, the population of this isomer can be reproduced via direct E3 excitations of odd spin members of the isomeric band from the ground state band.

• Received 20 April 1993

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.48.2517