Rotationally resolved high (n > 100) Rydberg states of benzene

Using sub-Doppler double resonance excitation individual high-n Rydberg states were excited in a polyatomic molecule. Even for a selected JK intermediate rovibrational state in benzene, C6D6, several Rydberg series are observed converging to different limits. The pulsed field ionization signal has a decay time that is longer than expected from measured lifetimes of low Rydberg states of benzene and ascribed to l-mixing in the residual electric stray field.