The Herzberg II system of O2 in emission in the oxygen–argon afterglow

Abstract

Several hitherto unidentified very faint emission bands were observed in the oxygen–argon afterglow under a moderately high dispersion. Two of these bands at 4491 and 4791 Å were identified as the (0–7) and (0–8) bands, respectively, of the Herzberg II [Formula: see text] forbidden system of O2, where the previous vibrational assignment of the upper state has been raised by five units. Their rotational structure was analyzed and the new molecular constants are given. The rest of the bands, some of which also occur in the nightglow, belong to some other band system. They were not analyzed because of insufficient resolution.