Two-laser studies of E → V energy transfer reactions involving CO and electronically excited I2, ICl and NO2

The relaxation of electronically excited I₂, ICl and NO₂ by CO has been investigated using a dye laser for electronic excitation (in the 590 nm region) and a cw CO laser for measuring the extent of CO product vibrational excitation. The CO molecules formed in these quenching reactions were found to carry very small fractions of electronic energies, in sharp contrast to the results observed in other E → V transfer reactions involving atomic species which carry comparable amounts of electronic energies.