Laser vaporization of alloys: Laser induced fluorescence of heteronuclear metal clusters

We demonstrate in this manuscript that the laser vaporization-laser induced fluorescence technique can be a very useful tool in studies of heteronuclear metal molecules. We examine here the products of vaporization of copper with the group III A elements Ga and In. The electronic transitions of CuGa and CuIn diatomics are reported and discussed, as well as some new observations of the Cu₂ spectra and dynamics. It is also shown that the metals are initially vaporized in an atomic form and that the molecular species are formed collisionally in the gas phase.