Quasiparticle alignment in the most deformed krypton isotope sup 74 Kr

High-spin states in {sup 74}Kr were studied using the {sup 58}Ni({sup 19}F,{ital p}2{ital n}){sup 74}Kr reaction at 62 MeV. States up to (14{sup +}) in the ground state band and a number of states in three side bands were placed in the level scheme. The level scheme of {sup 74}Kr closely resembles those of {sup 76}Kr and {sup 78}Kr. Quasiparticle alignment occurs at {h bar}{omega}{approx}0.65 MeV in agreement with a recent calculation. There is no evidence for an alignment at lower frequency as was previously reported. Mean lifetimes were measured for six states in the ground state band of {sup 74}Kr using the Doppler shift attenuation and recoil-distance methods. The lifetimes imply transition quadrupole moments of 3.2{minus}3.3 {ital e}b, the highest known among Kr isotopes. The corresponding axial deformation is {beta}{sub 2}{approx}0.41.