Enhanced optogalvanic effect in pulsed optical double resonance spectroscopy

Large enhancements of the optogalvanic signal, up to two orders of magnitude, were obtained in an optical double resonance spectroscopy. Ne atoms in metastable or in other 3s states were excited by two pulsed dye lasers, pumped by the same nitrogen laser, and tuned separately to two successive transitions with a common intermediate energy level. The experiments were performed in hollow cathode tubes with Na, U and Ca cathodes and Ne buffer gas. This method adds more energy-levels detection sensitivity to the conventional single step optogalvanic spectroscopy of atoms and molecules.