2008 Eighth Annual Beckman Scholars Symposium
Friday Poster Session - July 28, 2006

We have recorded hyperfine resolved laser excitation spectra of the B2?5/2 –X12?3/2 and C2? 3/2 –X12?3/2 electronic transitions of TaO. The electronic spectrum of this molecule was first explored by Cheetam and Barrow using a grating spectrograph. A Ti:sapphire ring laser was used to analyze TaO molecules that were produced with a hollow cathode discharge. We achieved hyperfine resolution using the sub-Doppler technique of inter-modulated florescence spectroscopy. A least-squares fit of the transition frequencies was used to determine improved values for the rotational parameters and values for the magnetic dipole and electric quadrupole parameters of these states.