Green bands of the CsHg molecule

Abstract

We report the first observation of laser-induced fluorescence of the CsHg molecule. Cs/Hg vapor mixtures contained in a heat-pipe oven were excited by several different argon ion laser lines. Following these excitations, we observed three distinct peaks at λ=492.8, λ=498.3, and λ=521.5 nm in addition to the well-known fluorescence of the Cs2 molecule. Based on an analysis using ab initio potential energy curves of Cs2 and CsHg, we identified the origin of these three distinct peaks as bound–free transitions of CsHg (λ=492.8: IV3/2→X1/2, λ=498.3: VII1/2→X1/2, and λ=521.5 nm: VI1/2→X1/2). Furthermore, we could show that two different production channels are responsible for the formation of the CsHg molecules in the excited states. The excitation of the Cs/Hg vapor mixtures with wavelengths λexc=476–514 nm of the argon ion laser results in the production of the CsHg molecules via a photoassociation process, whereas the CsHg molecules are produced in a three-body collision following an excitation with λexc=457 nm. These results are confirmed by subsequent quantum-mechanical simulations of the observed laser-induced fluorescence spectra of CsHg.