Continuum emission from recombining oxygen and nitrogen plasmas

The quantum defect method is used to obtain photoionization cross-sections for some 40(55) levels of OI (NI) over a range of electron energies from threshold to one Rydberg. These cross-sections are then incorporated into a model that predicts the total radiative emission resulting from radiative recombination and bremsstrahlung in the presence of singly ionized oxygen (nitrogen) atoms. Modified emission coefficients are presented for the wavelength region extending from the visible to the long wave infrared for a variety of temperatures.