Nascent metastable products in the reactions Ba+NO₂ and Ba+N₂O

The chemiluminescent reactions Ba+N₂O and Ba+NO₂ are studied using laser-induced fluorescence under molecular beam and low pressure flow conditions. The studies indicate the nascent electronic branching between chemiluminescent and metastable levels for the two reactions. In both reactions the predominant product channel is the ground electronic state. For the more exothermic Ba+N₂O reaction, the exothermicity is mainly deposited into vibrational and rotational excitation of ground electronic state levels which exceeds the energies of the first few excited electronic states of BaO. Excited electronic states which are populated are also vibrationally and rotationally hot. For the Ba+NO₂ reaction the predominant ground state products are vibrationally cold, but rotationally hot. Excited states produced are both vibrationally and rotationally cold. Selective production of particular metastable electronic states is seen.