THE EQUILIBRATION OF VIBRATIONAL EXCESS ENERGY

Infrared double resonance spectroscopy with picosecond pulses is used to determine the relaxation pathways of vibrational energy after excitation of the CH stretching mode of bromoform. It will be shown that an intermediate vibrational bottleneck state, presumably ν2, with a lifetime of ≈ 200 ps exists. About 1 ns after excitation a new thermal equilibrium with a 10 K temperature increase is established. © 1990.