A crossed molecular beams investigation of the reactions O(3P)+ C6H6, C6D6

A crossed beams investigation of the reactions of O(3P)+C6H6, C6D6 has beeen carried out using a seeded, supersonic, atomic oxygen nozzle beam source. Angular and velocity distributions of reaction products have been used to identify the major reaction pathways. The initially formed triplet biradical, C6H6O (C6D6O), either decays by hydrogen (deuterium) elimination or becomes stabilized, most likely by nonradiative transition to the S0 manifold of ground state phenol. CO elimination was not found to be a major channel. The branching ratio between H(D) atom elimination and stabilization was found to be sensitive to both collision energy and isotopic substitution.