Yrast structure of neutron-rich Ti-53

γ rays from neutron-rich Ti nuclei in the vicinity of N = 32 have been studied at Gammasphere using deep-inelastic reactions induced by 48 Ca beams on thick 208 Pb and 238 U targets. The 53 Ti yrast cascade was identified for the first time, and the location in energy of states with spin up to I = 21/2 was determined. The excitations of 53 Ti provide new tests of effective interactions for full- pf -shell calculations. Comparisons between theory and experiment for the highest spin states in 53 Ti favor the recently proposed GXPF1A interaction, which accounts for the appearance of a neutron subshell closure at N = 32 in Ti isotopes as well as for the lack of a similar subshell closure at N = 34, as predicted by earlier calculations with another interactionstatus: publishe