EXPERIMENTAL STARK WIDTHS OF KR-III

We present Stark width measurements of three strong Kr III lines of th e (5s(5)S degrees-5p(5)P) quintet. The measurements are performed in a plasma produced in the gas-liner pinch, which is equipped with a Thom son scattering system as an independent plasma diagnostic. The investi gation shows that the lines are emitted spatially homogeneous and opti cally thin, thus an experimental scaling law of the Stark width with e lectron density can be presented. Another plasma regime with a density variation along the z-axis can be cultivated by an unusual strong see ding of the hydrogen plasma with krypton ions. This large amount of te st gas injection produces inhomogeneous spectra along the z axis. The nonuniformity of the emission of the spectral lints is attributed to a n inhomogeneity of the plasma column resulting from instabilities gene rated in the compression phase of the plasma. [S1063-651X(98)06811-1].