Gas temperature dynamics of vibrationally excited ozone

The temperature dynamics of molecular O3 gas excited by a 9.6-micron CO2 laser pulse is investigated theoretically. It is shown that the temperature dynamics is nonmonotonic in time and that, depending on the laser pulse parameters, both heating and cooling of the gas are possible. Calculations are carried out within the framework of a kinetic model which takes account of the various channels of the R-T, V-V, V-V-prime, and V-T-prime relaxation processes.