Two-photon ionization of xenon at 193 nm

Abstract

A microwave bridge has been used in conjunction with an ArF excimer laser to measure the coefficient $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ for two-photon ionization of Xe at 193 nm. The bridge permits the measurement of ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{m}$, the collision frequency for momentum transfer, and the display of the temporal history of the absolute electron density. Although considerably larger than previous estimates, the value of $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ reported here (4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}32}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{4}$ ${\mathrm{W}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$) is in agreement with the recent theoretical calculations of McGuire.