High-resolution transient-double-resonance spectroscopy in SF_6

Abstract

Four distinct collisionless excitation processes are observed when SF(6) molecules are illuminated simultaneously by "weak" continuously tunable cw probe radiation and by "strong" pulsed-pump radiation. These processes are identified by studying the line shape, frequency, and temporal decay of the change in transmitted probe intensity induced by the pump pulse. The significance of this work for the spectroscopy of high vibrational levels and for collisionless dissociation is discussed briefly.