The E.S.R. and electronic absorption spectra of Chichibabin's biradical

The absorption spectra of a number of saturated hydrocarbons in the vacuum ultra-violet region have been examined and compared with their photoelectron and electron-loss spectra. Important conclusions about the quantum defect associated with the excited electrons and the nature of the excited states have been drawn from the relative positions of these spectra. The Rydberg bands of ethane, which were initially thought to originate in the C-C bond, have been shown to be associated with an electron largely localized in the CH₃ group.