Polarization analysis of fluorescence probing the alignment of Xe+ ions in the resonant Auger decay of the Xe* 4d-15/26p photoexcited state

Xe II fluorescence, following the resonant Auger decay of the Xe^* 4d^-1_5/26p photoexcited state, has been measured in the wavelength region 400 nm <=λ (fluo) <=610 nm by means of dispersed fluorescence spectroscopy, and the degree of linear polarization of the emitted light has been analyzed. From these data, the alignment of the ionic 5p⁴6p states produced by the Auger decay has been determined by taking into account the depolarization of the radiatively decaying Xe II multiplet due to cascade population and hyperfine interactions. Calculations of the alignment are performed in a multiconfigurational Dirac-Fock approach and compared with the experiment. Good agreement between experiment and theory has been obtained for almost all fine-structure components of the Xe II 5p⁴6p multiplet, providing reliable alignment parameters of the ionic states produced upon resonant Auger decay.