The Electronic Spectrum of Tellurium Dioxide

The electronic spectrum of gas-phase tellurium dioxide has been recorded between 345 and 406 nm using the technique of laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy. The TeO(2) sample was prepared by direct heating of the solid and by seeding it in a continuous free-jet expansion in argon. Twenty-seven cold bands and thirty-two hot bands were assigned. The wavenumbers of the band origin and symmetric stretching and bending vibrational modes for the upper and lower states were determined in a simple least-squares fit: nu(0) = 25526 cm(-1), omega(1)(') = 679 cm(-1), omega(2)(') = 220 cm(-1), omega(1)(") = 823 cm(-1), omega(2)(") = 282 cm(-1). Copyright 2000 Academic Press.