$beta$ decay of the $^{61}$Cr$_{37}$ ground state has been studied. A new half-life of 233 +/- 11 ms has been deduced, and seven delayed $gamma$ rays have been assigned to the daughter, $^{61}$Mn$_{36}$. The low-energy level structure of $^{61}$Mn$_{
36}$ is similar to that of the less neutron-rich $^{57,59}$Mn nuclei. The odd-A $_{25}$Mn isotopes follow the systematic trend in the yrast states of the even-even, Z + 1 $_{26}$Fe isotopes, and not that of the Z - 1 $_{24}$Cr isotopes, where a possible onset of collectivity has been suggested to occur already at N = 36.
The $beta$-decay and isomeric properties of $^{54}$Sc, $^{50}$K and $^{53}$Ca are presented, and their implications with respect to the goodness of the N=32 sub-shell closure discussed.
Progress in the measurement of the ground state magnetic moments of mirror nuclei at NSCL is presented. The systematic trend of the spin expectation value $<s>$ and the linear behavior of $gamma_p$ versus $gamma_n$, both extracted from the magnetic m
oments of mirror partners, are updated to include all available data.
The electric quadrupole coupling constant of the ground state of 37K(3/2+, 1.22 s) in a tetragonal KH2PO4 single crystal was measured to be |eqQ/h| = 2.99 +- 0.07 MHz using the beta-ray detecting nuclear quadrupole resonance technique. The electric q
uadrupole moment of 37K was determined to be |Q(37K)| = 10.6 +- 0.4 efm2, where the known electric quadrupole coupling constant of stable 39K in the KH2PO4 crystal was used as a reference. The present experimental result is larger than that predicted by shell-model calculations in the sd or the sd and fp model spaces. A possible variation of effective charges was explored to explain the discrepancy.
Beta-decay properties of neutron-rich Ca isotopes have been obtained. Half-life values were determined for the first time for 54Ca [86(7) ms], 55Ca [22(2) ms], and 56Ca [11(2) ms]. The half-life of 230(6) ms deduced for 53Ca is significantly longer t
han reported previously, where the decay chain 53K -> 53Ca -> 53Sc was considered. A delayed gamma ray with energy 247 keV as identified following beta decay of 54Ca, and is proposed to depopulate the first 1+ level in 54Sc. The beta-decay properties compare favorably with the results of shell model calculations completed in the full pf-space with the GXPF1 interaction. The half-lives of the neutron-rich Ca isotopes are also compared with gross beta-decay theory. The systematic trend of the neutron-rich Ca half-lives is consistent with the presence of a subshell gap at N=32.
Intermediate-energy heavy-ion collisions can produce a spin polarization of the projectile-like species. Spin polarization has been observed for both nucleon removal and nucleon pickup processes. Qualitative agreement with measured spin polarization
as a function of the momentum of the projectile-like fragment is found in a kinematical model that considers conservation of linear and angular momentum and assumes peripheral interactions between the fast projectile and target. Better quantitative agreement was reached by including more realistic angular distributions, de-orientation caused by gamma-ray emission, and by correcting for the out-of-plane acceptance. The newly introduced corrections were found to apply to both nucleon removal and nucleon pickup processes.
