Subthreshold internal conversion to bound states in highly ionized 125Te ions.

A new mode of internal conversion decay, in which the converted electron is excited to a bound orbital instead of a continuum orbital, is discussed. General theoretical results are presented for the relation between bound internal conversion and continuum internal conversion of the nucleus. It is shown that the transition rate for internal conversion decay is continuous across the energy threshold between continuum final states and bound final states. Theoretical predictions for decay to bound states of {sup 125}Te are consistent with experimental data on internal conversion in highly charged ions of this nuclide. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}