Deformed intruder band in 112Te: first evidence for rotational behaviour in the tellurium isotopes

States in the neutron-deficient 110,112Te isotopes have been populated following 58Ni+58,60Ni reactions. Gamma-ray coincidence data were acquired with the Eurogam spectrometer in conjunction with the Daresbury recoil separator and with the Chalk River 8π spectrometer. Although the low lying yrast states are not collective in these nuclei, a long regular cascade of transitions, indicating collective behavior, was found in 112Te extending to high spin. This structure is interpreted in terms of a deformed 4-particle 2-hole 0+2 state coupled to rotationally aligned quasiparticles, and represents the first example of a rotational ‘‘intruder’’ band in the tellurium isotopes