Relative yields and cross sections for atomic thallium states produced in photodissociation of thallium halide vapors

Summary form only given. Results are reported of experiments measuring the relative yields for ground (6**2 P//1 //1 //2 ) and metastable excited (6**2 P//3 //1 //2 ) neutral atomic thallium generated by photodissociation of TlI, TlBr, and TlCl vapors at halide densities up to 10**1 **7 cm** minus **3 at a number of UV wavelengths corresponding to the outputs of the XeF, XeCl, KrF, KrCl, and ArF lasers. The evolving densities of ground and metastable state thallium following short-pulse UV irradiation of the halide vapor were monitored using conventional time-resolved absorption spectroscopy with broadband probe sources (pressure-broadened thallium lamps and flashlamps). Transients relating to both ground and metastable state densities were recorded simultaneously with a high-speed two-channel digitizing system and computer averaged over a number of separate shots. Computer approximations to the probe, absorber, and detector spectral profiles allowed the conversion of transient absorption signals into the temporal evolution of the ground and metastable state densities following dissociation.