Relaxation rates in molecular beam maser experiments

✍ Scribed by A. Ben-Reuven; S.G. Kukolich

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1973
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 406 KB
• Volume: 23
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0009-2614
• DOI: 10.1016/0009-2614(73)85102-4

✦ Synopsis

A theo;ctical explanation is given of recent measurements by Kukolich, Wang and Oates on the relaxation of pure inversion states and superposition states in a molecular-beam ammonia maser spectrometer. The Feynman-Vemon-Hellwarth representation is used, combined with an impact theory of collision damping, to derive Lhe rate equations. It is shol+n. in agreement with experiment, that the longitudinal-component decay rate (analogous to a T1 process in the Bloch equations in magnetic resonant=) ir larger than the transverse-component decay rate (the analog of a T, proccss), in contrast to the usual magnetic-resonance case. The difference between the two rates depends on tie efficiency of inelastic collisions in mung the hvo maser levels, and is therefore more likely to occur with polar scattering gases havinp appropriate energy level spacings and populations.