Observation of parity-unfavored transitions in the nonresonant photoionization of argon

Single-photon ionization of an atom or molecule can be subdivided into parity-favored and -unfavored transitions, the latter characterized by electron emission, preferentially perpendicular to the electric vector. The nonresonant existence of these transitions is shown experimentally and studied over an extended energy range for a variety of satellite transitions in atomic argon. The spectra exhibit several clearly resolved satellite lines with strongly negative β values close to -1, independent of the photon energy. The results confirm the corresponding predictions of angular-momentum transfer theory.