Ionization mechanism of cesium plasma produced by irradiation of dye laser

When a cesium vapor was irradiated by a dye laser which was tuned to the cesium atomic transition line, the number of charged particles produced by the laser radiation was observed. Several sharp peaks in the number of charged particles were observed, which corresponded to the atomic transition where the lower level was the 6P excited atom. The ionization mechanism of the laser-produced cesium plasma has been discussed. An initial electron is produced by laser absorptions of the cesium dimer. When the cesium density is high, many 6P excited atoms are excited by electron collisions. The 6P excited atom further absorbs the laser photon and is ionized through the higher-energy state. As the cesium vapor pressure increases, the resonance effect becomes observable. The 6P excited atom plays dominant role in the ionization mechanism of the laser-produced cesium plasma. (author)