Production and quenching of XeCl(B, C) and Xe2Cl* initiated by two-photon excitation of Xe and Xe2

Abstract The rare-gas halide excimer, XeCl(B, C), was produced in gas-phase mixtures of Xe and Cl 2 by reactions initiated by the two-photon excitation of atomic xenon and xenon dimers in the wavelength region 246.5 to 258 nm. The production mechanisms of XeCl(B, C) were identified and characterized. Excitation of xenon dimers resulted in photoionization, and the resulting xenon ions participated in the mechanism that produced XeCl(B, C). The rate constant for the quenching of Xe 2 Cl(4 2 Γ) by Cl 2 was determined to be k =(3.9±0.4)×10 −10 cm 3 molecule −1 s −1 .