Session G - Planetary Physics/Astrophysics/Magnetism.
MIXED session, Saturday morning, October 11
234, Culler Hall
One of the fastest growing research areas today is the study and analysis of uv astrophysical data that has recently become available from new observational instruments unhampered by the earth's atmosphere. In order to model stellar spectra in astrophysics, high quality laboratory data on oscillator strengths and branching fractions are desperately needed. The branching fractions are measured by observing laboratory plasmas with a radiometrically calibrated 2 meter spectrometer equipped with a thermoelectrically cooled photodiode array. The direct oscillator strength measurements are performed on gaseous samples using the method of self-absorption of resonance radiation. An important overlap with research areas of industrial significance is found in new and efficient lighting systems and flat panel display screens.