Photolysis at 266 nm of argon matrix isolated ozone monomer

The photodissociation of ozone trapped at high dilution in solid argon has been reinvestigated at different temperatures and various photon flux, comb ining irradiation at 266 nm and infrared spectroscopy. In argon, recombinat ion of O+O-2 is a major pathway and the weak decrease of ozone is due to ca ge exit of oxygen atoms which is dependent of the temperature and of the in itial photon flux. Kinetic curves are well fitted by a double exponential e xpression and a model based upon two different cage exit pathways is propos ed. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-9606(99)01316-1].