Atomic Polarization of Sulfur Hexafluoride and of Carbon Tetrafluoride

Abstract

A microwave cavity technique, operating at a frequency of 800 Mc/sec, has been used to measure the dielectric constants of SF₆ and CF₄ between 295° and 630°K. Over this temperature range the molar polarization has been shown to be independent of temperature within an accuracy of a few tenths of a percent. The atomic polarization is calculated and compared with previous measurements of absolute infrared absorption intensities for the two gases. The use of precise dielectric constant measurements as a check on the accuracy of infrared intensity measurements is discussed.