The chemical nature of "A" depends on the type of organism. Purple sulfur bacteria oxidize hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) to sulfur (S). In oxygenic photosynthesis, water (H 2 O) serves as a substrate for photolysis resulting in the generation of diatomic oxygen (O 2). This is the process which returns oxygen to Earth's atmosphere. Photolysis of water occurs in the thylakoids of cyanobacteria and the chloroplasts of green algae and plants.