TEMPERATURE-DEPENDENT DEPOLARIZATION CROSS-SECTIONS OF THE 5D6P P-3(1) AND D-3(1) STATES OF LASER-ABLATED BA IN HE GAS IN THE RANGE 10-300K

We have applied the laser-ablation technique for the study of depolari zation effects of the 5d6p P-3(1) and D-3(1) states Of Ba with He gas in the wide temperature range of 10-300 K. The depolarization cross se ctions of both states have been found to have a positive temperature d ependence, indicating that the responsible interaction is not a van de r Waals type. A tentative and qualitative explanation for the differen ce of the temperature dependence between 5n6p P-3(1) and D-3(1) is giv en in terms of electron density distribution.