Potential Energy Curves for Alkali Metal-Rare Gas Exciplex Lasers

Abstract

Lasers driven by optical pumping of alkali metal rare gas collision pairs have been demonstrated recently. Accurate potential energy curves for the alkali metal rare gas dimers are need to analyze and predict the scaling characteristics of this type of laser system. We are using high-level theoretical methods to obtain these data and predict the absorption spectra. The potential energy curves, transition dipole moments, and spin-orbit coupling matrix elements for MRg (M=Rb,Cs and Rg=Ar,Kr) electronic states converging to the lowest three dissociation limits have been characterized. Quasi-relativistic matrix elements have been obtained for a wide range of internuclear distances using different sets of small core relativistic pseudopotentials. The core-valence correlation was included in a large-scale multi-reference configuration interaction (MR-CI) treatment. Excited state potentials were also examined using multi-reference averaged quadratic coupled cluster (MR-AQCC) methods. The data obtained from these calculations have been used to predict the absorption spectra for the MRg pairs using semi-classical and quantum mechanical models.