Results are reported from a systematic study of electronic branching in the reactions of metastable alkaline earth atoms with halogen molecules. They form chemiluminescent (CL), ionic (CI), and" dark" products. It was found that (1) the CI yields are of the order of 1% in all systems studied;(2) the CL channels are characterized by high yields (5-35%) in the Ca (3P) reactions and by low yields, of the order of 1%, for the Mg (3P) systems;(3) beam ...
