Deexcitation of Cd 53P1 atoms in collisions with ground state atoms and molecules

Collisions of excited Cd 5³P₁ atoms were investigated using atomic fluorescence spectroscopy. Cadmium vapor, together with a quenching gas, was irradiated in a quartz fluorescence vessel with Cd 3261 Å resonance radiation and the intensity of the resulting resonance fluorescence was monitored in relation to the gas pressures. The experiments yielded the following cross sections Q₁₀ (in A²) for collisional transfer 5³P₁→5³P₀: CdAr=2×10^?3, CdN₂=8.0, CdH₂=7.0, CdCO=15.6. The cross sections Q for collisional deexcitation to the ground state (quenching) in A² are CdN₂ = 2.6×10^?2, CdH₂ = 11.0, CdCO = 3.4, CdCO₂ = 26.