SUPERFLUORESCENCE CAUSED BY COLLISIONS BETWEEN EXCITED Mg ATOMS

when 3s3p(¹p) of Mg is resonantly excited by a dye laser, the bright and directional emission at 5184Å can be observed. We have measured its intensity and temporal behavior in different Mg density. This emission is believed to be the superfluorescence, whose upper level is populated by inelastic collisions between excited Mg atoms.