Characterization of a metastable state of ozone by high-resolution Fourier transform spectrometry

We report a high-resolution study of the Wulf bands of ozone. A preliminary analysis of the ratational structure in two vibronic bands yields the band origin T0 = 9555.49 ± 0.25 cm−1, the bending frequency ω2 = 530.9 ± 0.4 cm−1 and geometries (R, θ) for the corresponding bound vibrational levels of the upper state, which is most likely to be 3A2. Rotational levels extend to at least 1090 cm−1 above T0. The radiative lifetime is ∼ 0.1−0.01 s, indicating the stateʹs metastable character.