Isotope-selective photoionisation of palladium

A scheme for isotope-selective ionisation of palladium is studied experimentally. A considerable enrichment by the ¹⁰²Pd, ¹⁰⁴Pd, and ¹⁰⁵Pd isotopes is achieved. Based on experimental data, the estimate for the hyperfine and isotopic structures of the 4d⁹5p ³P₁ level is obtained according to which the requirements to laser radiation and the Doppler width of atomic lines providing a high photoionisation selectivity are determined. To obtain a highly enriched (above 50 %) ¹⁰²Pd isotope, the spectral width of a laser line (after frequency doubling) should be 60 – 80 MHz, the laser frequency stability (before doubling) should be 20 – 40 MHz, and the width of atomic lines should not exceed 100 MHz.