Photolysis of pure solid O3 and O2 films at 193 nm

U. Raut, M. J. Loeffler, M. Famá, R. A. Baragiola

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15 Scopus citations

Abstract

We studied quantitatively the photochemistry of solid O3 and O2 films at 193 nm and 22 K with infrared spectroscopy and microgravimetry. Photolysis of pure ozone destroyed O3, but a small amount of ozone remained in the film at high fluence. Photolysis of pure O 2 produced O3 in an amount that increased with photon fluence to a stationary level. For both O2 and O3 films, the O3:O2 ratio at large fluences is ∼0.07, about two orders of magnitude larger than those obtained in gas phase photolysis. This enhancement is attributed to the increased photodissociation of O2 due to photoabsorption by O2 dimers, a process significant at solid-state densities. We obtain initial quantum yield for ozone synthesis from solid oxygen, φ (O3) 0.24 ± 0.06, and quantum yields for destruction of O3 and O2 in their parent solids, φ(-O3) 1.0 ± 0.2 and φ(-O2) = 0.36 ± 0.1. Combined with known photoabsorption cross sections, we estimate probabilities for geminate recombination of 0.5 ± 0.1 for O3 fragments and 0.88 ± 0.03 for oxygen atoms from O2 dissociation. Using a single parameter kinetic model, we deduce the ratio of reaction cross sections for an O atom with O2 vs. O3 to be 0.1-0.2. The general good agreement of the model with the data suggests the validity of the central assumption of efficient energy and spin relaxation of photofragments in the solid prior to their reactions with other species.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number194501
JournalJournal of Chemical Physics
Volume134
Issue number19
DOIs
StatePublished - May 21 2011
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Physics and Astronomy
  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry

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