: |
: |
|---|
MARILYN E. JACOX AND WARREN E. THOMPSON, Optical Technology Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8441.
When O2 trapped in solid neon at 4.3 K in sites adjacent to an NO molecule is excited by 240 to 420 nm radiation, NO3 is stabilized. Photoexcitation of NO3 to its 663-nm state, which has 2E' symmetry, leads to the re-formation of weakly interacting (O2)(NO) pairs trapped in solid neon. In addition to infrared absorptions near the gas-phase band centers of NO and O2, the weakly bound complex shows several absorptions at lower frequencies. Experiments in which either the O2 or the NO moiety of the initial sample deposit is enriched in O-18 show O-isotopic randomization of the complex which results from photodestruction of the NO3 product.