Generation of singlet oxygen in fullerene-containing media: 1. Photodesorption of singlet oxygen from fullerene-containing surfaces

It is shown that upon irradiation of fullerene-containing surfaces by laser or flashlamp pulses, oxygen adsorbed by these surfaces efficiently escapes to the gas phase. The observation of luminescence pulses in the spectral region of 762 and 1268 nm confirms the presence of oxygen molecules in the excited singlet state in the desorbed oxygen. The conditions for optimisation of the efficiency of singlet-oxygen production are studied. It is shown that singlet oxygen at the concentration sufficient for obtaining operation of a fullerene — oxygen — iodine laser can be produced in this way.