ENHANCEMENT OF SUPERDEFORMED BAND POPULATION IN ND-135

It is proposed that the differences in superdeformed band population o bserved in recent experiments result from a modification of the compou nd-nucleus angular momentum distribution due to the presence of low-ly ing vibrational states in the projectile and/or target nuclei. To test this hypothesis the nucleus Nd-135 was studied with the reactions Ge- 74 + Ni-64 and Mg-26 + Cd-112. The Ge-74-induced reaction was found to preferentially populate high-spin states, including superdeformed sta tes. Statistical-model calculations are consistent with the present ob servations provided coupled-channel effects are taken into account.