Abstract
The electron spin resonance (ESR) method is, at the moment, one of the most sensitive physical methods of detecting, identifying, and studying free radicals, ion-radicals, and molecules in the triplet state formed during photochemical reactions. In this review, the use of the ESR method in studies of photodecomposition and photoionisation reactions of simple and of complex compounds is discussed on the basis of results obtained by Soviet and foreign workers. It is concluded that the ESR method will prove to be a powerful physical method of investigation of photochemical systems only if used in conjunction with other methods (in particular, optical spectroscopy).
Bibliography of 154 references.