Coulomb excitation of the , mirror pair
J. Henderson · G. Hackman · P. Ruotsalainen · J. D. Holt · S. R. Stroberg · C. Andreoiu · G. C. Ball · N. Bernier · M. Bowry · R. Caballero-Folch · S. Cruz · A. Diaz Varela and 14 other authors
Background: Electric-quadrupole () strengths relate to the underlying quadrupole deformation of a nucleus and present a challenge for many nuclear theories. Mirror nuclei in the vicinity of the line of represent a convenient laboratory for testing deficiencies in such models, making use of the isospin-symmetry of the systems. Purpose: Uncertainties associated with literature strengths in \textsuperscript{23}Mg are some of the largest in nuclei in the -shell. The purpose of the present work is to improve the precision with which these values are known, to enable better comparison with theoretical models. Methods: Coulomb-excitation measurements of Mg and Na were performed at the TRIUMF-ISAC facility using the TIGRESS spectrometer. They were used to determine the matrix elements of mixed / transitions. Results: Reduced transition strengths, , were extracted for \textsuperscript{23}Mg and \textsuperscript{23}Na. Their precision was improved by factors of approximately six for both isotopes, while agreeing within uncertainties with previous measurements. Conclusions: A comparison was made with both shell-model and {\it ab initio} valence-space in-medium similarity renormalization group calculations. Valence-space in-medium similarity-renormalization-group calculations were found to underpredict the absolute strength - in agreement with previous studies.