LIFETIME MEASUREMENTS OF THE KR-III 5P(5)P(3) LEVEL USING TIME-RESOLVED LASER-INDUCED FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY

The radiative lifetime of the Kr III 5p (P3)-P-5 level has been measur ed by the technique of time-resolved laser-induced fluorescence and a novel ion source. In a first step doubly charged krypton ions are prep ared by the combination of a pulsed electron beam and a pulsed hollow cathode discharge. In a second step the selective excitation of the le vel under investigation is performed with subnanosecond laser pulses f rom a frequency stabilized distributed-feedback dye laser system. A li fetime of tau = 5.7 (3) ns is found for the 5p (P3)-P-5 level.