Abstract
Evidence has been obtained for the existence of the long predicted 16 spin-gap isomer in Cd. The decay of the isomer was identified and studied following the use of an 850 MeV/u beam of Xe impinging on a Be target and the fragment recoil separator at the GSI Laboratory. Gamma decays from the fragments were detected using the RISING gamma ray array, in its stopped beam configuration, plus a silicon active stopper. The data obtained have been compared with shell model predictions, which indicate that the isoscalar neutron-proton interaction plays a key role in the formation of the isomer. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.