The role of shell evolution in shape coexistence

Abstract

We first review the shell evolution in exotic nuclei driven by nuclear forces. We then demonstrate that the underlying mechanism played by the balance of the tensor and central components in the effective nucleon-nucleon interaction is crucial when describing shape coexistence. This effect will be referred to as type II shell evolution, while the shell evolution passing through a series of isotopes or isotones is denoted as type I. We describe type II shell evolution in some detail for the case of the 68Ni nucleus as an example. We present how the fission dynamics can be related to enhanced deformation triggered by type II shell evolution, at its initial stage. It is suggested that the island of stability may be related to the suppression of this mechanism.