Energetics and collision dynamics of electronic transition lasers

Quantum mechanical studies, including both ab initio configuration-interaction expansions and density functional calculations, have been carried out to examine the electronic structure, radiative lifetimes and collisional branching ratios for molecules of importance in studies of electronic transition lasers. These studies have included an analysis of the energetics of Mg/MgO excitation transfer reactions, the spectroscopy of the low-lying electronic states of the I2 and I3 molecules and the mechanisms of the I2/O2 1 Delta g dissociation kinetics. In addition, a study of the electronic structure of the NaMg system was carried out to evaluate its potential as a excimer laser.