ausblenden:
Schlagwörter:
-
Zusammenfassung:
We present a combined experimental and theoretical study on the radiative lifetime of CO in the a³Π1,2, v=0 state. CO molecules in a beam are prepared in selected rotational levels of this metastable state, Stark-decelerated and electrostatically trapped. From the phosphorescence decay in the trap, the radiative lifetime is measured to be 2.63±0.03 ms for the a³Π1, v=0, J=1 level. From spin-orbit coupling between the a³Π and the A¹Π state a 20% longer radiative lifetime of 3.16 ms is calculated for this level. It is concluded that coupling to other ¹Π states contributes to the observed phosphorescence rate of metastable CO.