Canonical Distribution Law and KCl:Sm2+Fluorescence: TheC2vParadox

A combination of critical experiments has been carried out in order to elucidate the recent conclusions of Bradbury and Wong, who attributed all the dominant KCl: ${\mathrm{Sm}}^{2+}$ fluorescence lines to the nearest-neighbor $C_{2v}\mathrm{}(1,1,0)\mathrm{}{\mathrm{Sm}}^{2+}-{\mathrm{K}}^{+}$ vacancy site. In an extensive investigation into the radiationless quenching, characteristic lifetimes, excitation spectra, and Zeeman polarization of KCl: ${\mathrm{Sm}}^{2+}$ fluorescence lines, all the prominent lines are unequivocally attributed to a distribution of three different ${\mathrm{Sm}}^{2+}$ - ${\mathrm{K}}^{+}$ vacancy sites. In addition, 18 weak lines are shown to originate from dimeric cluster and ${\mathrm{O}}^{2-}$ compensated sites. The paradoxical $C_{2v}$ interpretations of Bradbury and Wong are shown to be based on incorrect premises, inadequate experimentation, and confusion in the identity of samples with different dopant concentrations.