Light from the Collision of Excited N2 with NO

Abstract

When a thermal beam of N₂ is excited by electrons of controlled energy and collides with NO, light is observed. The excitation function shows that this light is produced by excited N₂ in metastable states. The spectrum is obtained with very low resolution, and it is identified as the transition A ²π—X ²Σ of NO, the γ bands, from low vibration levels. Experiments with other gases are briefly described.