Self-consistent calculation of nuclear rotations: The complete yrast line of 24Mg

We present a method of solution on a three-dimensional mesh of the self-consistent cranked Hartree-Fock + BCS equations. Using several parametrizations of the Skyrme interaction we apply our method to the study of the complete yrast line of 24Mg. We find that J=26 is the limiting angular momentum for this nucleus. We have also studied examples of collective rotations along the γ=600 axis involving hexadecapole deformations. Our work corroborates earlier calculations using the Nilsson-Strutinsky method and extends them to higher spins. (orig.)