Formation of ozone: Metastable states and anomalous isotope effect

A clear explanation for an anomalous isotope effect in ozone formation is given in terms of the energy transfer mechanism, where the metastable states of ozone are formed first, and then stabilized by collisions with other atoms. Unusual nonstatistical properties of metastable states spectra discovered earlier [J. Chem. Phys. 118, 6298 (2003)] are incorporated into the kinetics model, where different metastable states are treated as different species, and the stabilization step is treated approximately. The population of the ozone metastable states builds up and decays through three possible O-2+O channels. When different isotopes of oxygen are involved the three channels become open at different energies because of the differences in the quantum zero-point-energies (DeltaZPE) of the different O-2 molecules. The spectrum of metastable states is anomalously dense below the DeltaZPE threshold and these states are accessible only from the lower entrance channel. Also, these low-lying metastable states are stabilized very efficiently (by collisions with third body) because they are energetically close to the bound O-3 states. Such processes significantly enhance the formation rates of ozone isotopologues through the lower channels over the formation rates through the upper channels. Numerical results obtained for J=0 give isotope effects in the right direction and of the right order of magnitude. Consideration of J>0 should improve the comparison with experiment. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.