On the Raman effect in diatomic gases

Abstract

The only observation on Raman effect in gases, as far as I know, is due to Ramdas.(1) The substance investigated was ethyl ether vapor, and the Raman spectrum was found to be identical with that of the liquid. The aim of the present paper is to give some information about the Raman spectra of molecules of simple and well-known structure. It would have been perhaps more interesting to observe the effect in atoms, but it seems bard to get appropriate metallic vapors of sufficient density, and the rare gases, on the other hand, have no energy levels above the normal state low enough to give a Raman effect in the optical region. But, in the last years, our knowledge of molecular spectra has progressed far enough to enable us to verify if the Raman spectrum of a given molecule is connected with its band spectrum as is to be expected from the theory.