Evidence of chiral bands in even-even nuclei

Evidence for chiral doublet bands has been observed for the first time in the even-even nucleus Nd136. One chiral band was firmly established. Four other candidates for chiral bands were also identified, which can contribute to the realization of the multiple pairs of chiral doublet bands (MχD) phenomenon. The observed bands are investigated by the constrained and tilted axis cranking covariant density functional theory (TAC-CDFT). Possible configurations have been explored. The experimental energy spectra, angular momenta, and B(M1)/B(E2) values for the assigned configurations are globally reproduced by TAC-CDFT. Calculated results support the chiral interpretation of the observed bands, which correspond to shapes with maximum triaxiality induced by different multiquasiparticle configurations in Nd136. © 2018 American Physical Society.