Long-range potentials, including retardation, for the interaction of two alkali-metal atoms
- Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 (United States)
The retarded long-range potentials for the dispersion interaction arising from induced multipole moments of two ground-state alkali-metal atoms are evaluated as functions of the separation [ital R] for Li, Na, K, Rb, and Cs. Accurate atomic properties, determined using published model potentials, are utilized. Values for the potentials are given out over a wide range of [ital R]. Results for H are also given. For small [ital R] the results reproduce the accepted values for the unretarded dispersion dipole-dipole (van der Waals), dipole-quadrupole, quadrupole-quadrupole, and dipole-octupole coefficients, while for [ital R][r arrow][infinity] the Casimir-Polder potentials, due to retardation or effects due to the finite speed of light, are obtained. The overlap between the retardation potentials and terms arising from the Breit-Pauli Hamiltonian is explored.
- OSTI ID:
- 7032538
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review A; (United States), Vol. 50:4; ISSN 1050-2947
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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