  The dipole strength of the nuclide $^{76}$Ge was studied in photon-scattering
experiments using bremsstrahlung produced with electron beams of energies of
7.8 and 12.3 MeV at the $\gamma$ELBE facility. We identified 210 levels up to
an excitation energy of 9.4 MeV and assigned spin $J$ = 1 to most of them. The
quasicontinuum of unresolved transitions was included in the analysis of the
spectra and the intensities of branching transitions were estimated on the
basis of simulations of statistical $\gamma$-ray cascades. The photoabsorption
cross section up to the neutron-separation energy was determined and is
compared with predictions of the statistical reaction model. The derived photon
strength function is compared with results of experiments using other
reactions.
