STUDY OF THE LIHG EXCIMER - BLUE-GREEN BANDS

We report for the first time the production of the LiHg excimer by a photochemical reaction of excited Li-2 molecules with Hg(6s(2 1)S(0)) Excitation energy was provided by a cw ultraviolet (UV)-argon ion laser operating in single-line and in multi-line mode or by pulsed XeCl excimer laser at 3080 Angstrom. We observed bound-free emission of LiHg in the form of diffuse bands peaking at 4450 and at 4670 Angstrom. The latter was structured by bound-bound emission lines. Relativistic ab initio calculations for the potential energy curves of LiHg and for the relevant dipole transition moments were performed. Using these results, an interpretation of the observed emission is presented.