Low-energy electromagnetic excitation strengths in 121Sb and 123Sb

Results are presented from nuclear resonance fluorescence experiments on the odd-mass nuclei 121Sb and 123Sb with Z=51. The improved sensitivity reached with the present NRF facility, installed at the 4.3 MV Dynamitron accelerator of the Stuttgart University, allowed the detection of huge numbers of weak photoexcitations in the stable Sb nuclei 121Sb (164 transitions) and 123Sb (83 transitions) in the energy range up to 4 MeV and 3.5 MeV, respectively. The data are compared to former results for odd-mass nuclei near the Z=50 and N=82 shell closures (117Sn, 139La, 141Pr, and 143Nd). In the odd-mass nuclei within the Z=50 region, a similar total amount of electromagnetic excitation strength below 4 MeV is found; however, in 121Sb and 123Sb (Z=51) this strength is much more fragmented than in 117Sn with a closed proton shell (Z=50)