Microwave Spectroscopic Study of NiF in the Electronic Ground and Lowest Excited States

The rotational spectra of NiF in the electronic ground (2)Pi state and the lowest electronically excited (2)Sigma state have been observed. The source of nickel atom was sputtering from a nickel electrode or nickel powder placed on a stainless steel electrode. The molecular constants have been determined by a least-squares analysis of the observed transition frequencies. The rapid increase in the Lambda-type splittings in the ground state reveals that the observed rotational transitions are ascribed to the spin substate (2)Pi(3/2). The rotational transitions corresponding to the other substate,(2)Pi(1/2), have not been observed. The large spin-rotation interaction constant gamma in the electronically excited (2)Sigma state is consistent with that from the electronic spectroscopy. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.