15min:

H. FAN, I. IONESCU, C. TAO, M. DESELNICU, C. MUKARAKATE AND S. A. REID, Department of Chemistry, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53233; JU XIN, Department of Physics and Engineering Technologies, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA 17815.

To further investigate the Renner-Teller effect and excited state barriers to linearity and dissociation in the simplest singlet carbene, HCF, we measured fluorescence excitation spectra and lifetimes of the pure bending levels 2₀ⁿ and combination bands 1₀¹2₀ⁿ and 2₀ⁿ3₀¹ in the A¹A''-X¹A' system of the deuterated isotopomer, DCF. The spectra were measured under jet-cooled conditions using a pulsed discharge source, and rotationally analyzed to yield precise values for the band origins and rotational constants. The derived A¹A'' state parameters are compared with our previous results for HCF, and with the predictions of ab initio electronic structure theory.