g factors of the first 2⁺ states in the transitional ^{92,94,96,98,100}Mo isotopes and the onset of collectivity

The g factors of the 2₁⁺ states of the stable, even-even Mo isotopes ^{92,94,96,98,100}Mo were measured using the transient field method. While ⁹²Mo₅₀ has a g factor consistent with that of the πg_9/2² configuration, the g factor of ⁹⁴Mo is about 60% of the hydrodynamic model value, Z/A. As further pairs of neutrons are added, the heavier isotopes ^96,98,100Mo show a monotonic increase in g(2⁺) to values that exceed Z/A for ⁹⁸Mo and ¹⁰⁰Mo. The systematic behavior of the g(2₁⁺) values for the Mo isotopes, as one moves away from the neutron shell closure at N=50, is compared with the shell model, a collective model with pairing corrections and IBM-2 calculations.