Octupole excitations in the N=85 lanthanides

Excited states in {sup 145}Nd and {sup 147}Sm nuclei have been studied using heavy-ion induced reactions. Level schemes of both nuclei are very similar to the level scheme of {sup 149}Gd. In analogy to the {sup 149}Gd isotone most of the observed excitations are interpreted as single-particle neutron excitations with octupole vibrations coupled to them. Candidates for double octupole-phonon states were identified in both nuclei. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}