Influence of the neon 1s configuration on the optogalvanic effect at the 5945-nm (1s_5–2p_4) and 5852-nm (1s_2–2p_1) lines

A model based on rate equations has been developed to describe the optogalvanic signal observed in the negative-glow region of a hollow-cathode discharge when a pulsed dye laser is tuned to the 1s5–2p4 and 1s2–2p1 neon transitions (Paschen notation). We include an ambipolarlike term of charge loss that is determined empirically and a term that takes into account the variation of photoelectrons produced by changes in the 1s2 population on laser irradiation. The change of sign of the signal for transitions from the 1s2 level with respect to those from the 1s5 state, the amplitude, and the time evolution are well predicted.