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Experimental and theoretical (using a two-level approximation) investigations were made of the properties of resonance holograms (excited-state gratings) created by monochromatic linearly polarized radiation from a cw dye laser in a beam of sodium atoms as a result of the 32P3/2– 32S1/2(F=2) transition. A good qualitative agreement was observed between the theory and experimental results. It was established that the maximum diffraction efficiency was attained when the intensity of the radiation used to form the hologram was of the order of the intensity needed to saturate the transition and the optical thickness of the beam was ~1.1. The sensitivity of the medium was ~1 nJ/cm2 for 1% diffraction efficiency.

Three-stage selective photoionization of calcium atoms was investigated using cw dye lasers. Selective excitation was due to an intercombination transition 4s2 1S0→4s4p 3P1 (λ = 657.3 nm), additional excitation by a transition 4s4p 3P1→4s5s 3S1 (λ = 612.2 nm), followed by final ionization at λ = 488.0 nm from an argon laser. The photoion currents of different nuclides were determined using an MKh-7303 mass spectrometer. The ratios of the ion currents were used to find the separation coefficients a which were ~ 900 for 48Ca, ~ 1400 for 44Ca, and ~ 5500 for 42Ca.

A degenerate resonant parametric interaction was observed in a beam of sodium atoms involving the 3P1/2–3S1/2(F=2) transition in spatially separated optical fields.