  An extensive study of the level structure of 61Co has been performed
following the complex 26Mg(48Ca, 2a4npg)61Co reaction at beam energies of 275,
290 and 320 MeV using Gammasphere and the Fragment Mass Analyzer (FMA). The
low-spin structure is discussed within the framework of shell-model
calculations using the GXPF1A effective interaction. Two quasi-rotational bands
consisting of stretched-E2 transitions have been established up to spins I =
41/2 and (43/2), and excitation energies of 17 and 20 MeV, respectively. These
are interpreted as signature partners built on a neutron {\nu}(g9/2)2
configuration coupled to a proton {\pi}p3/2 state, based on Cranked Shell Model
(CSM) calculations and comparisons with observations in neighboring nuclei. In
addition, four I = 1 bands were populated to high spin, with the yrast dipole
band interpreted as a possible candidate for the shears mechanism, a process
seldom observed thus far in this mass region.
