Radiation-Catalyzed Ortho-to-Para Transition in Solid Tritium
The ortho-to-para conversion time in solid tritium has been measured by NMR techniques. The observed rate is at least ten times faster than the temperature-independent self-conversion in solid H/sub 2/ and increases exponentially as the temperature decreases, e.g. the 1/e times are 490 min at 22.5 K and 64 min at 9.1 K. Because of the analogous situation in solid H/sub 2/, where atomic H is created when the solid is irradiated, it appears that in T/sub 2/, the T atoms are the most likely catalysts for the ortho-para conversion.