Optical Absorption and Fluorescence Studies in High Pressure Cesium-Xenon Mixtures

The pressure and temperature dependent absorption and fluorescence spectra of the cesium-xenon (CsXe) molecule have been examined. In contrast to previous investigations of the alkali-rare gas molecules, cesium atomic states that have weakly allowed optical transitions have been studied and have been shown to form excimer levels that are attractive for application as potential dissociation lasers. In particular, the (Cs[7²S]Xe)^* excimer appears promising as a source of high-energy laser radiation due to 1) its large dissociation energy (0.132 eV), 2) its stimulated emission cross section of ≃10⁻¹⁷ cm², and 3) its small population threshold inversion densities (≃10¹³ cm⁻³).