An Intense Slit Discharge Source of Jet-Cooled Molecular Ions and Radicals (Trot

Published

July 1, 1996

Author(s)

D T. Anderson, S Davis, Timothy Zwier, David Nesbitt

Abstract

A novel pulsed, slit supersonic discharge source is described for generating intense jet cooled densities of radicals (>10¹²/cm³) and molecular ions (>10¹⁰/cm³), under long absoption path (80cm), supersonically coolded conditions. The design confines the discharge region upstream of the supersonic expansion orifce, and thus radical and ion densities are achieved with efficient rotational cooling down to 25 K or less. The collisionally collimated velocity distribution in the slit discharge geometry yields sub-Doppler spectral linewidths, wich for open shell radicals reveals spin-rotation splittings and broadening due to nuclear hyperfine structure. Application of the split source for high resolution, direct IR laser absorption spectroscopy in discharges is demonstrated on species such as OH, H₃O⁺ and N₂H⁺.

Citation

Chemical Physics Letters

Volume

258

Issue

No. 1-2

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

discharge, infrared, jet-cooled, molecular ions, radicals

Citation

Anderson, D. , Davis, S. , Zwier, T. and Nesbitt, D. (1996), An Intense Slit Discharge Source of Jet-Cooled Molecular Ions and Radicals (T_rot < 30K), Chemical Physics Letters (Accessed May 3, 2024)