Rb$\mathsf{_{2}}$ diffuse band emission excited by diode lasers

We investigated collisional processes involved in the population of the Rb₂ diffuse band through resonant excitation of Rb atoms. Near-infrared (780 nm) and violet (420 nm) diode lasers were used for the Rb first ( 5 ²S_1/2? 5 ²P_3/2\rm 5 ^{2}S_{1/2}\to 5 ^{2}P_{3/2} ) and second ( 5 ²S_1/2? 6 ²P_3/2\rm 5 ^{2}S_{1/2}\to 6 ^{2}P_{3/2} ) resonant doublet excitations. Laser induced fluorescence spectra were detected and investigated at different rubidium densities, buffer gas pressures and excitation wavelengths.     

Measurements of photoionization cross sections from the 4p, 5d and 7s excited states of potassium

New measurements of the photoionization cross sections from the 4p ²P_1/2,3/2, 5d ²D_5/2,3/2 and 7s ²S_1/2 excited states of potassium are presented. The cross sections have been measured by two-step excitation and ionization using a Nd:YAG laser in conjunction with a thermionic diode ion detector. By applying the saturation technique, the absolute values of the cross sections from the 4p ²P_3/2 and 4p ²P_1/2 states at 355 nm are determined as 7.2±1.1 and 5.6±0.8 Mb, respectively. The photoionization cross section from the 5d ²D_5/2,3/2 excited state has been measured using two excitation paths, two-step excitation and two-photon excitation from the ground state. The measured values of the cross sections from the 5d ²D_5/2 state by two-photon excitation from the ground state is 28.9±4.3 Mb, whereas in the two-step excitation, the cross section from the 5d ²D_3/2 state via the 4p ²P_1/2 state and from the 5d ²D_5/2,3/2 states via the 4p ²P_3/2 state are determined as 25.1±3.8 and 30.2±4.5 Mb, respectively. Besides, we have measured the photoionization cross sections from the 7s ²S_1/2 excited state using the two-photon excitation from the ground state as 0.61±0.09 Mb.     

Approximation of the electron excitation cross sections for triplet states excited from the 23 S 1 metastable state in helium

The method of approximated four-parameter representation of the electron-impact cross sections for a helium atom excited from the 2³ S ₁ metastable state into higher triplet states is applied and discussed. The approximation consists in interpolation over the whole set of the cross section values for each helium atomic level measured in our experiments and reported by other researchers. The approximation parameters and the cross sections calculated using these parameters for the maxima of the corresponding excitation functions are presented for 19 triplet levels of the S, P, and D HeI series with n=2–10. The interpolated values are compared to the theoretical cross sections. The serial regularities were investigated for the S, P, and D levels studied and a decrease in the cross sections for excitation from the given metastable state within each series, described by the approximate law Q=Cn ^?5, was revealed. Validity of the similarity relationship and the Bethe approximation for cross sections in the 2³ S?n ³ P series was verified. It is shown that the cross sections for a triplet level excitation from the 2³ S ₁ metastable state exceed the corresponding values for excitation from the ground state of helium by a factor of approximately 10³ for n=2 and 3 and 10 2 for the higher levels. It is concluded that the proposed method of representation of the cross sections for the electron-impact excitation of triplet levels from the metastable state increases accuracy and more importantly, reliability of the final results.     

Hyperfine interactions in the alkaline-earth Sr ions by collinear fast beam laser spectroscopy

The magnetic dipole hyperfine structure constants of the⁸⁷SrII 5s²S_1/2 ground state and the 5p²P_1/2 excited state, and the isotope shifts of the ionic 5s²S_1/2 → 5p²P_1/2 resonance transition for all stable Sr isotopes, measured by collinear fast beam laser spectroscopy, are reported.     

Pulsed-periodic laser on RM helium and strontium transitions

Conditions of generation of a running excitation wave in the active medium of gas lasers and efficiency of the running wave application for pumping of the active medium are considered by the example of a strontium vapor laser. It is demonstrated that the running excitation wave is generated directly in the active laser medium and is supported by the energy stored in the capacitive component of the impedance of a gas-discharge tube. Generation on the self-limited (2¹P₁-2¹S₀) transition of the helium atom at λ = 2058 nm and simultaneous generation on RM transitions of the strontium ion and strontium and helium atoms and on a number of neon atom transitions is first excited. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 1, pp. 6–9, January, 2008.     

Infrared laser-emission study in a resonantly excited sodium vapor

We report on a study of time dependence of ir laser emission at 3.41 μm in a dense Na vapor that is resonantly excited to the 3² P levels by a flashlamp, pumped dye laser. Energy-pooling collisions (excitation transfer) between excited atoms create a large population inversion among the 5² S _1/2 and 4² P _3/2 states which is destroyed by electron collisions as a result of subsequent plasma formation. The ir laser emission may serve as a new diagnostic tool to follow the time evolution of such media.     

Doubly excited triplet states of highly stripped ions

Transition energies, Coulomb repulsions and effective quantum numbers have been calculated for the doubly excited Nsnp: ³P⁰ (for N = 2, n = N,?, 5n = N,\ldots, 5); Nsnd: ³D^e (for N = 2, n=N+1, ?, 5n=N+1, \ldots, 5) and Npnd: ³F⁰ (for N = 2, n=N+1, ?, 5n=N+1, \ldots, 5) states for the highly stripped ions Na⁹⁺{\rm Na^{9+}}, Mg¹⁰⁺\rm Mg^{10+}, Al¹¹⁺\rm Al^{11+}, Si¹²⁺\rm Si^{12+}, P¹³⁺\rm P^{13+} and S¹⁴⁺\rm S^{14+}. Time-dependent perturbation theory has been applied to calculate such transitions properties. A time-dependent harmonic perturbation causes simultaneous excitation of both the electrons with a change of spin state. The doubly excited energy levels and the analytic representation of their wave functions are obtained by identifying the poles of an appropriately constructed linearized variational functional with respect to driving frequency. Most of the results are new. The transition energies and effective quantum numbers of 2s2p: ³P⁰ states of all the ions agree well with the only available experimental data.     

Selecting molecules embedded in nanodroplets (clusters) of superfluid helium

A method of selecting molecules embedded in nanodroplets (clusters) of superfluid helium is proposed, which is based on the selective vibrational excitation of embedded molecules by intense IR laser radiation. This action leads to a significant decrease in size of the excited clusters, after which these clusters are separated with respect to size via scattering of the cluster beam on a crossing atomic beam. The method is described in detail and the possibility of selecting SF₆ molecules in liquid helium nanodroplets using the excitation by CO₂ laser radiation and the angular separation via scattering on a xenon atomic beam is demonstrated. The results show that, by using this technique, it is possible to separate molecules with respect to isotope (element) composition. Advantages and drawbacks of the method are analyzed.     

Visible superfluorescence from optically pumped europium atoms

We have observed superfluorescence (SF) on five atomic transitions at visible wavelengths 633.58, 635.00, 640.09, 640.61 and 736.22 nm in Doppler broadened gas of europium (Eu) atom. The nanosecond SF pulses were observed by longitudinally pumping Eu vapor column with a pulsed dye laser to upper states 4f⁶5d6s², ⁸D_7/2at 346.79 nm and 4f⁷5d6p, ¹⁰F_5/2at 348.73 nm from the ground state 4f⁷6s², ⁸S_7/2. High optical conversion efficiency ≈10% was measured for these SF transitions. Our experiment deals with the large sample multilevel SF in the regime where the length of the excited column L is greater than the maximum value of the Arecchi-Courtens length (L_c). The observed variation of SF peak intensity (I_fl) and time delay for SF evolution (τ_D) with number of atoms in the excited state (N) resemble theoretically predicted SF scaling laws for transverse excitation, namely I_fl∝N and t_D μ 1/?N\tau_D \propto 1/{\sqrt N} although the experimental condition is similar to the swept excitation. This could be due to the Rabi frequency associated with the pump transition which is comparable to the SF delay time precluding the initiation of SF at different times along the sample and results in transverse (instantaneous) excitation. The experimental τ_D values were found to be in agreement with the quantum mechanical calculations describing SF.     

Femtosecond laser pulse train effect on Doppler profile of cesium resonance lines

We present direct observation of the velocity-selective optical pumping of the Cs ground state hyperfine levels induced by the femtosecond (fs) laser oscillator centered at either D2 (6 ²S_1/2↦6 ²P_3/2, 852 nm) or D1 (6 P_1/2, 894 nm) cesium line. We utilized previously developed modified direct frequency comb spectroscopy (DFCS) which uses a fixed frequency comb for the excitation and a weak cw scanning probe laser centered at the ¹³³Cs 6 ²S_1/2↦6 ²P_3/2 transition (D2 line) for ground levels population monitoring. The frequency comb excitation changes the usual Doppler absorption profile into a specific periodic, comblike structure. The mechanism of the velocity selective population transfer between the Cs ground state hyperfine levels induced by fs pulse train excitation is verified in a theoretical treatment of the multilevel atomic system subjected to a pulse train resonant field interaction.     

Electrical and optical emission measurements of a capillary dielectric barrier discharge

We report a capillary dielectric barrier discharge (Cap-DBD) plasma operated in atmospheric pressure air. The plasma reactor consists of metal wire electrodes inside quartz capillary tubes powered with a low kilohertz frequency AC high voltage power supply. Various reactor geometries (planar, 3-D multilayer, and circular) with wall-to-wall separation ranging from zero up to 500 micron were investigated. For the electrical and spectral measurements, three reactors, each with six tubes, six inches in length, were assembled with gap widths of 500 micron, 225 micron, and 0 micron (i.e. tubes touching). The discharges appear homogenous across the whole device at separations below 225 micron and turned into filamentary discharges at larger gap spaces. The operating voltage was generally around 3–4 kV (rms). The power consumption by the Cap-DBD was calculated using voltage/charge Lissajous figures with observed powers of a few watts to a maximum of about 14 W for the reactor with no gap spacing. Further studies of optical emission spectroscopy (OES) were employed to evaluate the reactive species generated in the microplasma source. The observed emission spectrum was predominantly within the second positive system of N₂\mbox{N}_2(C³\mbox{C}^3 P_u\Pi_u–B³\mbox{B}^3 P_g\Pi_g) and the first negative system of N⁺₂\mbox{N}^+_2(B²\mbox{B}^2 S⁺_u\Sigma^+_u–X²\mbox{X}^2 S⁺_g\Sigma^+_g).     

The LIF Excitation Spectrum of Jet-Cooled 2,6-Dicyano-3, 5-Dimethylaniline

The laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) excitation spectrum of jet-cooled 2, 6-dicyano-3,5-dimethylaniline (DCDMA) has been measured in the spectral range of 29,750–32,250cm^–1. The band origin at 29,860.8 cm^–1 and as many as 250 vibrational bands have been identified in the excitation spectrum. The analysis of the excitation spectrum of DCDMA gives more than 28 vibrational modes involving aromatic ring oscillations and oscillations related to the substituent groups. DCDMA is nonplanar in the ground state, with the NH₂ plane at about 9° with respect to the molecular plane (RHF/6-31G*). The singlet excited molecule is planar (CIS/6-31G*). Both CIS/6-31G* and CASPT2 calculations predict that the lowest excited state of DCDMA involves a dominant HOMO-LUMO excited configuration. The characteristic feature of the excitation spectrum of DCDMA is the presence of progressions in the low-frequency mode, 112 cm^–1. The calculations suggest that this mode and some other active modes involve motions of the amino group and strongly interacting adjacent cyano substituents.     

Stimulated Raman adiabatic passage via the ionization continuum in helium: Experiment and theory

We experimentally demonstrate coherent population transfer, driven by stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP) between two bound quantum states, coupled via a continuum of states. We present extended numerical and experimental investigations on population transfer from the metastable state 2s ¹S₀ to the excited state 4s ¹S₀ in metastable helium atoms. While techniques based on incoherent excitation do not permit any population transfer via rapidly decaying continuum states, our data indicate a maximum transfer efficiency of 20% in coherent excitation by STIRAP. We study the transfer efficiency with respect to the relevant experimental parameters.     

Axial and conical parametric emissions from potassium atoms under two-photon fs excitation

We report on the emissions near the 5P_3/2,1/2–4S_1/2 and 4P_3/2,1/2–4S_1/2 transitions of potassium atoms which are excited by a fs laser beam. The field at the transition 5P_3/2,1/2–4S_1/2 is mainly the result of a parametric process with an axial profile when the excitation frequency is tuned above resonance and a conical one below resonance. Similar but not identical far-field patterns were also observed for the 4P_3/2,1/2–4S_1/2 emission. No amplified spontaneous emission was observed for the fs case, in contrast to the ns excitation for the 4P_3/2,1/2–4S_1/2 transition.     

Influence of ultrashort laser pulse duration on the X-ray emission spectrum of plasma produced in cluster target

Line emission spectrum of a laser plasma produced in an argon cluster jet target was measured on the n ¹ P1?1¹ S ₀ (n=5–9) transitions of the helium-like Ar XVII ion for a pulse duration varying from 45 fs to 1.1 ps and a constant fluence of ～10⁵ J/cm². The independent modeling of the relative intensities of the transitions from the n=5,..., 10 levels, as well as of the 2¹ P ₁? 1² S ₀ and 2³ P ₁?1² S ₀ lines and dielectronic satellites indicates that the electron temperature is anomalously low and that the electron density in emitting plasma increases with shortening the laser pulse. The excitation from the ground state by a small fraction of hot electrons is expected to be the main channel of populating the Ar XVII levels.     

Two Dimensional Rotational Temperature Measurement by Multiline Laser Induced Fluorescence of Nitric Oxide in Combustion Flame

Two-dimensional rotational temperature measurement was performed in a stable combustion flame of premixed butane and oxygen using multiline laser induced fluorescence (LIF) of nitric oxide molecules. Multiple rotational absorption lines of A²∑⁺Π;X²II(0,0) Q₁ and Q₂ lines were excited by laser light around 226 nm, and the LIF signal was observed by an image-intensified digital camera. Temperature was determined through least squares fitting correlation between LIF intensity and excitation rotational quantum number for the Boltzmann distribution function. The measured LIF intensity was approximated by the Boltzmann distribution with good accuracy, and the temperature obtained was between 500 K and 1800 K for the test flame. The measuring error of the temperature was evaluated and found to be 80 K, which corresponded to 8% of the measured fluorescence intensity. The two-line LIF scheme was evaluated by different pairs of excitation lines (Q₁(31.5)/Q₁(16.5) and Q₁(18.5)/Q₁(16.5)) for comparison with the multiline LIF approach. Temperature which was obtained by two-line LIF scheme corresponded well with multiline LIF results for Q₁(31.5)/Q₁(16.5) excitation. However, for Q₁(18.5)/Q₁(16.5) excitation, the obtained temperature did not agree with the multiline LIF result because the population of rotational states J=18.5 and J=16.5 is similar at high temperatures. We found that two-line LIF temperature measurement was reliable when excitation lines were suitably selected.     

铯6S1/2 -6P3/2 -8S1/2阶梯型系统中超精细能级的多重电磁感应透明

基于铯原子6S_1/2 -6P_3/2 -8S_1/2的阶梯型能级系统,对室温下铯原子气室中的电磁感应透明(EIT)谱进行了研究.由于探测光的频率锁定于基态6S_1/2(F=3)到中间态6P_3/2的超精细跃迁线上,耦合光在中间态6P_3/2和激发态8S_1/2之间扫描,得到的EIT谱具有平坦的背景,提高了光谱的精度.理论上,采用了一个多能级的EIT模型,将其计算结果与所观察的实验现象进行了比较,二者符合得比较好. 关键词： 电磁感应透明 光抽运 超精细结构 阶梯型系统     

The ultimate sensitivity of a high-temperature microwave SQUID magnetometer operating in the hysteresis regime

A method for the determination of the noise spectral density in a high-temperature microwave SQUID operating in the hysteresis regime is developed. Under these conditions, the reflection coefficient serves as an output signal. It is shown that if a directional coupler used for extracting the reflected wave is placed as close to the SQUID loop as possible, the magnetometer can be designed as a microwave integrated circuit with a noise flux spectral density S_F ^1/2 < 10 ^{- 5} F₀ /\textHz^{\text0\text.5} ,\textwhere F_\text0 S_\Phi ^{1/2} < 10^{ - 5} \Phi _0 /{\text{Hz}}^{{\text{0}}{\text{.5}}} ,{\text{where }}\Phi _{\text{0}} , is the magnetic flux quantum.     

Penning collisions of laser-cooled metastable helium atoms

We present experimental results on the two-body loss rates in a magneto-optical trap of metastable helium atoms. Absolute rates are measured in a systematic way for several laser detunings ranging from -5 to -30 MHz and at different intensities, by monitoring the decay of the trap fluorescence. The dependence of the two-body loss rate coefficient β on the excited state ( 2³ P ₂) and metastable state ( 2³ S ₁) populations is also investigated. From these results we infer a rather uniform rate constant K _sp = (1±0.4)×10^-7 cm³/s. Received 8 September 2000 and Received in final form 19 December 2000     

S0 and S1 spectroscopy of jet cooled 9-cyano-10-methylanthracene: The methyl group as a molecular rotor

Jet-cooled fluorescence excitation and dispersed fluorescence spectra of 9-methylanthracene (MA), 9-cyanoanthracene (CA) and 9-cyano-10-methylanthracene (CMA) have been measured. The spectra of MA and CMA near the S₀-S₁ origin reveal a prominent torsional progression due to the hindered methyl group rotation and its torsional vibration against the aromatic ring frame. Additionally, the laser induced fluorescence LIF excitation spectrum of CMA shows the splitting of many vibrational modes.Observed positions and relative intensities of the methyl internal rotational bands were interpreted in terms of transitions calculated based on the quantum mechanical one-dimensional rotor. The low-frequency vibrational bands were interpreted also with the all electron quantum mechanical calculations within the RHF/6-31G(d,p), CIS/3-21G and CIS/6-31G(d,p) approximations. It is predicted that in the case of MA the eclipsed geometry (one C-H in the plane of the ring) is most stable in both S₀ and S₁ states. Conformation of the methyl group in CMA is suggested to change upon S₁ ← S₀ excitation (π/12 phase shift of the methyl group). The predicted energy barrier for methyl group rotation in the S₀ state of CMA is considerably higher (72 cm⁻¹) than that in the S₁ state (22 cm⁻¹). Following the present quantum mechanical calculations, the carbon atom of the methyl group belongs to the aromatic plane in the S₀ ground state but it deviates from this plane in the S₁ excited state. These in turn suggest that the calculated barrier for methyl group rotation in CMA has a 6-fold symmetry in the S₀ ground state and roughly a 4-fold symmetry in the S₁ state.