The A2Πu state of BO2. Radiative lifetime, electronic quenching and coupling with X2Πg

Abstract

A systematic study has been made on the dependence of the radiative lifetime of ¹¹BO₂(A²Π_u) on rotational and vibrational levels. Several rotational levels of the (100) and (002)A²Π_u vibronic states were found to have anomolously large lifetimes but no significant shift in position (<0.03 cm^–1). This is attributed to coupling with nearby levels of X²Π_g and the results are compared with recent measurements on the lifetime of CO⁺₂(A²Π_u).