Characterisation of the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v=0\) State and Its Interaction with the \(A^1\Pi\) State in Aluminium Monofluoride

• Published in: arXiv.org 2020-08
• Main Authors: Doppelbauer, Maximilian, Walter, Nicole, Hofsäss, Simon, Marx, Silvio, Schewe, H Christian, Kray, Sebastian, Pérez-Ríos, Jesús, Sartakov, Boris G, Truppe, Stefan, Meijer, Gerard
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aluminum; Banded structure; Electron spin; Electron states; Energy levels; Hyperfine structure; Interaction parameters; Laser cooling; Laser induced fluorescence; Lasers; Spin-orbit interactions
• ISSN: 2331-8422
• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2008.05210

Recently, we determined the detailed energy level structure of the \(X^1\Sigma^+\), \(A^1\Pi\) and \(a^3\Pi\) states of AlF that are relevant to laser cooling and trapping experiments. Here, we investigate the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v=0\) state of the AlF molecule. A rotationally-resolved (1+2)-REMPI spectrum of the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v'=0 \leftarrow a^3\Pi, v''=0\) band is presented and the lifetime of the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v=0\) state is measured to be 190(2)~ns. Hyperfine-resolved, laser-induced fluorescence spectra of the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v'=0 \leftarrow X^1\Sigma^+, v''=1\) and the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v'=0 \leftarrow a^3\Pi, v''=0\) bands are recorded to determine fine- and hyperfine structure parameters. The interaction between the \(b^3\Sigma^+, v=0\) and the nearby \(A^1\Pi\) state is studied and the magnitude of the spin-orbit coupling between the two electronic states is derived using three independent methods to give a consistent value of 10(1)~cm\(^{-1}\). The triplet character of the \(A\) state causes an \(A\rightarrow a\) loss from the main \(A-X\) laser cooling cycle below the 10\(^{-6}\) level.