Laser multiphoton mass spectroscopy of organometallic compounds: State selective and mass resolved detection of neutral fragment tellurium atoms from C2H5TeC2H5

Typical features in laser multiphoton ionization of organometallic compounds are well evident in the case of the diethyltelluride C₂H₅TeC₂H₅ molecule. The use of a tunable dye laser coupled with time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectroscopy has allowed to establish that a large amount of tellurium is eliminated from the parent molecule as a neutral atom either in its ground or low excited states. Sharp two- and three-photon atomic Te resonances, which give origin to extraproduction of Te⁺ ions, have been identified in the optical spectra measured by varying the laser wavelength.