Collisional alignment of the (3/ital p/)/sup 2//ital P//sub 3/2/ state of sodium during selective excitation of the (3/ital p/)/sup 2//ital P//sub 1/2/ level by monochromatic light
A. G. Petrashen, V. N. Rebane, T. K. Rebane
Calculations of the collisional relaxation of electronic--nuclear polarization moments of all state of the fine and hyperfine structure of the 3/ital p//sup 2//ital P/ doublet of the sodium atom (/ital J/=1/2 and 3/2, nuclear spin /ital I/=3/2) are carried out. The case of selective monochromatic excitation of the fine level /sup 2//ital P//sub 1/2/, allowing for the overlap of the Doppler shapes of the hyperfine components of the spectral line, is discussed. Such excitation gives rise in the /sup 2//ital P//sub 1/2/ state to four groups of excited atoms differing in values of the velocity projection on the direction of the light beam. The problem of collisional relaxation of the polarization moments is solved for each of these groups of atoms, account being taken of the anisotropy of the velocity distribution and intramultiplet mixing. The alignment induced in the levels of the hyperfine structure of the /sup 2//ital P//sub 3/2/ state, populated by anisotropic collisions with atoms of different inert gases, is calculated, as is the linear polarization of the light of sensitized fluorescence. The calculation results are in good agreement with the experiment.
•Oct 1, 1988•0 citations