Photostimulated detection of defect formation in BaF 2 under irradiation of synchrotron radiation

We have investigated the defect formation processes of BaF 2 single crystals under vacuum ultraviolet radiation with the use of combination spectroscopy of synchrotron radiation (SR) and laser. The defect formation efficiency was measured as a function of excitation photon energy of SR by means of a laser‐induced luminescence method. It was found that the efficiency depends significantly on the excitation photon energy. We show that the dependence can be explained in terms of the diffusive motion of hot conduction electrons generated by the photoexcitation. The relationship between the defect formation and the energy relaxation of core excitons is also discussed.