Collisional relaxation of highly excited uranium atoms in gases

Abstract
A laser induced fluorescence technique has been used to measure the electronic relaxation rates of highly excited uranium atoms. Cross sections for the collisional deactivation of atomic uranium in the 15 632 and 24 560 cm−1 states by He3, He4, H2, D2, Ne, and CH4 at room temperature are reported. Relaxation of these high lying states by foreign gases is very efficient and is likely governed by an inter‐state‐mixing process leaving the excited uranium atoms in very close lying neighboring levels.