POPULATIONS OF BaO STATES IN THE Ba + $N_{2} O$ FLAME USING THE BaO $C^{1}\Sigma^{+}$ STATE AS A PROBE

Abstract

The presence of highly vibrationally excited ground state BaO molecules and of metastable state molecules has been detected using laser induced fluorescence between those states and the BaO $C^{1}\Sigma$ state. The populations of these states are not in thermal equilibrium with the low vibrational states of BaO, and therefore represent a reservoir of energy for production of visible chemiluminescence.