[Collisional transfer of the Cs(8S) state and excitation of high lying atomic states].

Using selective stepwise excitation of the cesium 8S atomic level in Cs vapor, the collisional transfer and the population of the high-lying atomic states were studied in detail. At cesium densities of 10(16)-10(17) cm(-3), the rate coefficient of excitation collision [i. e.

[Study of resonance exchange collisions in cesium vapour by optical-optical double resonance spectroscopy].

An experimental study of cesium resonance exchange collision, Cs(6P(3/2), v) + Cs(6S(1/2), v')-->Cs(6S(1/2), v) + Cs (6P(3/2), v'), was carried out. Populations of excited atoms that all have the same z component of velocity were produced by pumping a vapor with a narrow-band laser. A counterpropagating single-mode diode laser was used to probe the excited atom velocity distribution in the 6P(3/2)-->8S(1/2) transition.

[Energy-pooling collisions of rubidium atoms: Rb (5P(J)) + Rb (5P(J))--> Rb (5S) + Rb (nl = 5D,7S)].

An experimental study of rubidium energy pooling collisions, Rb(5P(J)) + Rb(5P(J))-->Rb(nlJ') + Rb(5S), at thermal energies, was carried out in a cell. Atoms were excited to either the 5P 1/2 or 5P 3/2 state using a single-mode diode laser. The excited atom density and spatial distribution were mapped by monitoring the absorption of a counter-propagating single-mode diode laser beam, tuned to either 5P 1/2-->5D 3/2 or 5P 3/2-->7S 1/2 transition, which could be translated parallel to the pump beam.