INVESTIGATIONS ON THE VUV EMISSIONS OF NE-XE-CS GAS-MIXTURES EXCITED BY AN ELECTRICAL-DISCHARGE

VUV emissions of Ne-Xe-Cs mixtures excited by a pulsed electrical disc harge were investigated experimentally as a function of gas pressure a nd gas composition. For the studied discharge plasmas no fluorescence emissions originating to the radiative decay of the ionic excimer mole cule (XeCs)(+) at 160 mn were observed. Discharge excitation seems to be unsuitable for the generation of this ionic excimer, Previously rep orted fluorescence emissions due to the radiative transitions in the d ischarge-excited (XeCs)(+) molecule could not be confirmed in our expe rimental conditions. An upper limit for the unknown rate constant of t he formation reaction Xe- + Cs+ + Ne --> Xe+Cs + Ne was given.