Infrared absorption of iodomethylperoxy (syn -ICH ₂OO) radical generated upon photolysis of CH ₂I ₂ and O ₂ in solid para -H ₂

Irradiation of a para-hydrogen (p-H₂) matrix containing diiodomethane (CH₂I₂) and O₂ at 3.2 K with light at 280 ± 20 nm, followed by annealing of the matrix at 4.0 K, yielded infrared (IR) absorption lines at 2982.4, 1408.9, 1231.8, 1226.5/1225.6, 1085.6, 917.7, 841.6/841.1, 550.5, and 490.2 cm^-1 that are assigned to the syn-iodomethylperoxy (syn-ICH₂OO) radical. Further irradiation of the matrix at 365 nm diminished these features. Experiments with CH₂I₂ and ¹⁸O₂ yielded lines of syn-ICH₂¹⁸O¹⁸O at 1407.3, 1228.1/1227.7, 1217.7/1217.0, 1031.5, 899.9/899.4, 836.7/836.0, and 473.6 cm^-1. The assignments are based on the photolytic behaviour and comparisons of observed vibrational wavenumbers, IR intensities, and ¹⁸O-isotopic shifts with those predicted with the B3LYP/aug-cc-pVTZ-pp method. The observation is consistent with a mechanism that, upon photolysis of CH₂I₂ at 280 nm, CH₂I was formed and subsequently reacted with O₂ to yield syn-ICH₂OO. Compared with the gaseous reaction CH₂I + O₂ → CH₂OO + I at low pressure, observation of ICH₂OO in a p-H₂ matrix instead of CH₂OO in the gaseous phase indicates that the excess energy of internally excited ICH₂OO, produced upon reaction of CH₂I + O₂, was rapidly quenched in the matrix so that ICH₂OO became readily stabilised without further decomposition to form CH₂OO + I.