Lidar and searchlight instruments and techniques for atmospheric research developed at the V.E. Zuev Institute of Atmospheric Optics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, in recent years are described. Key results obtained using these techniques are presented.

The results of remote detection of objects containing explosives with a lidar detector of traces of explosives in combination with a portable express gas chromatograph are presented. It is...

The paper presents the results of an experimental study of the dynamic characteristics of the laser fragmentation/laser-induced fluorescence (LF/LIF) effects in nitrobenzene vapors under the separate initiation of processes of photofragmentation and fluorescence of fragments by nanosecond laser pulses. It is shown that, due to the inertia of the dissociation mechanism of nitrobenzene molecules, the process of the fragments’ formation continues even after letup of excitation. The highest concentration of fragments is reached in a time several times greater than the standard fragmentation pulse duration of 10 ns. A kinetic model is presented that allows one to trace the temporal dynamics of the LF/LIF process of nitrobenzene vapors under separate excitation. A good agreement between the experimental data and the results of calculation indicates the adequacy of application of the developed kinetic model for describing the LF/LIF process. The information obtained in the experiment made it possible to clarify the values of the rate constants of the nitrobenzene dissociation.

This paper presents the results of an experimental study of the dynamic characteristics of the laser fragmentation/laser-induced fluorescence (LF/LIF) process in nitrobenzene and para-nitrotoluene vapors under synchronized two-pulse laser irradiation. It is shown that if the values of the time delay between the pulses of fragmentation (248.4 nm) and excitation (247.87 nm) of NO fragments are in the range of 20–40 ns, the efficiency of the LF/LIF method can be increased several times.

Results of calculation of the absorption spectrum of phosphorus oxide (PO) corresponding to the A²Σ⁺ (v′ = 0) − X ²Π (v′′ = 0) transition are presented. The calculation is performed taking into account the perturbation of the v′ = 0 level of the A²Σ⁺ state by the v′ = 4 level of the b⁴Σ⁻ state. The efficiency of laser excitation of PO molecules is estimated as a function of the spectral parameters of the radiation. The time dependence of the efficiency of the excitation of PO fragments is calculated for a real atmosphere under two-pulse laser fragmentation of organophosphates for specified spectral linewidths Δλ and center positions λ₀.