1. Quantum computation solves a half-century-old enigma: Elusive vibrational states of magnesium dimer found
- Author
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Piotr Piecuch, Stephen H. Yuwono, and Ilias Magoulas
- Subjects
Physics ,Quantitative Biology::Biomolecules ,Multidisciplinary ,010304 chemical physics ,Computation ,Dimer ,Ab initio ,SciAdv r-articles ,Rotational–vibrational spectroscopy ,01 natural sciences ,Potential energy ,Full configuration interaction ,Physics::History of Physics ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,chemistry ,0103 physical sciences ,Atomic physics ,010306 general physics ,Root-mean-square deviation ,Research Articles ,Research Article ,Quantum computer - Abstract
Quantum computations unravel the mystery of spectral lines that have escaped experimental detection for decades., The high-lying vibrational states of the magnesium dimer (Mg2), which has been recognized as an important system in studies of ultracold and collisional phenomena, have eluded experimental characterization for half a century. Until now, only the first 14 vibrational states of Mg2 have been experimentally resolved, although it has been suggested that the ground-state potential may support five additional levels. Here, we present highly accurate ab initio potential energy curves based on state-of-the-art coupled-cluster and full configuration interaction computations for the ground and excited electronic states involved in the experimental investigations of Mg2. Our ground-state potential unambiguously confirms the existence of 19 vibrational levels, with ~1 cm−1 root mean square deviation between the calculated rovibrational term values and the available experimental and experimentally derived data. Our computations reproduce the latest laser-induced fluorescence spectrum and provide guidance for the experimental detection of the previously unresolved vibrational levels.
- Published
- 2020
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