Some properties of a long lifetime strongly-coupled molecular plasma produced by high Rydberg excitation of nitric oxide in a supersonic free jet

TL;DR

This study investigates a long-lived, strongly-coupled molecular Rydberg plasma generated by high Rydberg excitation of nitric oxide in a supersonic jet, revealing its size, structure, and behavior under small DC fields.

Contribution

It demonstrates the creation and characterization of a long lifetime, strongly-coupled nitric oxide plasma in a supersonic jet, including its size, structure, and response to electric fields.

Findings

Plasma lifetime exceeds 0.3 ms.

Plasma expands to about 3 cm after 310 microseconds.

Small DC fields reveal a smaller high-density core.

Abstract

A long life-time (>0.3 ms) strongly-coupled molecular Rydberg plasma is generated by the excitation of nitric oxide into the high-n Rydberg threshold region in the high-density region of a supersonic jet expansion. After 310 \mus the plasma has expanded to a size of ca. 3 cm. When subjected to very small DC fields from 0.2 to 1.0 V/cm the plasma reveals a much smaller high-density core structure of only 0.6 cm. The molecular Rydberg plasma is observed over a broad range of excitation energies, from threshold down to Rydberg states as low as n = 19.