High-resolution absorption cross sections of carbon monoxide bands at 295 K between 91.7 and 100.4 nanometers

Theoretical descriptions of the abundance and excitation of carbon monoxide in interstellar clouds require accurate data on the vacuum-ultraviolet absorption spectrum of the molecule. The 6.65 m spectrometer at the Photon Factory synchrotron light source was used to measure photoabsorption cross sections of CO features between 91.2 and 100.4 nm. These data were recorded at a resolving power of 170,000, more than 20 times greater than that used in previous work.