Van der Waals bonding in the lowest electronic states of MgAr, ZnAr, CdAr, and HgAr: Spectroscopic characterization of the b 3Π2 and e 3Σ+ states of the CdAr molecule

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Abstract
Laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy was utilized to characterize the b 3Π2 and e 3Σ+ states of the CdAr molecule. The CdAr(b 3Π2) state was synthesized by entrainment of metastable Cd(5s5p 3P2 ) atoms (created by laser vaporization of a Cd rod) into a supersonic expansion of Ar gas. Spectroscopic constants, bond lengths, and bond dissociation energies are reported for the CdAr(b 3Π2) and CdAr(e 3Σ+) states. A detailed discussion of van der Waals bonding in all of the low-lying electronic states of the MgAr, ZnAr, CdAr, and HgAr molecules is also presented, including an analysis of the effects of increasing spin–orbit coupling on the 3ΠΩ potential curves.