Design of an Apparatus for High Resolution Measurements of Atomic and Molecular Lifetimes by the High Frequency Deflection Technique

Abstract

The High Frequency Deflection technique introduced at this laboratory a couple of years ago has proved to be a very versatile general method for measuring optical lifetimes. Thus lifetime measurements have been performed in a large number of atoms, ions, molecules and ion-molecules with much greater efficiency than other methods permit and at 20-50 times higher spectral resolution than what is normally achieved. The present version of the apparatus associated with the High Frequency Deflection technique is described in this paper from a technical point of view and its performance is discussed.