Nonlinear Zeeman splitting of nitric oxide spectral lines in magnetic field

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Zeeman splitting of NO molecule ro-vibrational spectral lines in strong magnetic field was calculated and compared with experimental data. The nonlinear Zeeman splitting takes place in magnetic field of ~1 T and stronger. Keywords: Zeeman splitting, nitric oxide, CO laser 1. INTRODUCTION A nitric oxide NO molecule possesses a magnetic moment in a ground electronic state due to an orbital motion and a spin of unpaired electron. A spin-orbit in teraction results in two components ( 2 3 1/2 and 2 3 3/.2 ) of NO molecule (Fig.1,a). Due to intrinsic magnetic moment an absorption spectrum of NO molecule could be changed in a magnetic field. A magnetic splitting of NO spectral lines is used to detect sm all amount of NO molecules [1, 2] and its isotopomers [3], for example, in pharmacology. In a strong magnetic field such a magnetic splitting could be used to control a spectral broadening of a strongly paramagnetic NO molecule [4]. A Zeeman splitting is usually calculated with a linear approximation (a linear splitting) [1-3]. Indeed in Ref. [5] calculation results of linear splitting for NO spectral lines corresponding to A