HIGH RESOLUTION FOURIER TRANSFORM SPECTROSCOPY OF THE SINGLET MOLECULAR OXYGEN-IODINE REACTION AND POPULATIONS OF THE $B O^{+}_{u}$ AND A Iu STATES THROUGH NON LINEAR INVERSION OF EMISSION SPECTRA

Abstract

Author Institution: Laboratoire de Specdrometrie lonique et Moleculairs; Laboratokire Aime Cotton, CNRS IIThe dissociation of molecular lodine $I_{2}$ by metastable oxygen $O_{2} (^{1}\Delta_{g})$ is poorly understood. It leads to the dissociation of $I_{2}$. Knowledge of this process is important to assessing the ultimate efficiencies of high-power Chemical Oxygen lodine Lasers. In our analysis $O_{2}(^{1}\Delta_{g})$ is obtained from a microwave discharge in oxygen. The flow of less than 10\% of $O_{2}(^{1}\Delta_{g})$ is mixed with pure lodine. The reaction gives a flame emitting from $3 700 cm^{-1}$ to $20000 cm^{-1}$. We observe this flame along the axis with a high resolution Fourier Transform spectrometer. The $10000 - 20000 cm^{-1}$ emission is due to the $BO^{+}_{u} -xO^{+}_{2}$ transition and allows to determine the populations of the $BO^{+}_{u}$ It rovibrational levels.The red region come from $A lu \rightarrow. X O^{+}_{9}$ from which we obtain the A 1u populations We have set a general program that gives from non linear least squares fits the rovibrational populations and their statistical errors A 1u serves as a reservoir with a non Boltzmann vibrational distrbition and B O has a maximum population around $v=30-35$ The rotational distribution in $A 1u or B O^{+}_{u}$ is boltzmann and corresponds to $370 \pm 20 K$. We will give our main results. Our general fitting method will be presented and statistical or systematic errors discussed