Test of the Pluvinage Wave Function for the Helium Ground State

S. Jones
Joseph H. Macek
Don H. Madison, Missouri University of Science and Technology

This document has been relocated to http://scholarsmine.mst.edu/phys_facwork/317

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Abstract

The accuracy of the Pluvinage wave function for the ground state of helium is investigated by considering a number of different physical processes including double ionization by photoabsorption, Compton scattering, and electron impact. In the high-energy limit of these processes, the accuracy of the initial ground state can be ascertained without reference to the final double-continuum state. In this limit, we find that a Hylleraas description is superior to the Pluvinage one. For intermediate energies, final-state correlation becomes important, so we employ a 3C description of the final state (the 3C wave function is the double-continuum analog of the Pluvinage wave function). In this case, however, better agreement with experiment is obtained with the Pluvinage initial state. A possible explanation for this seemingly paradoxical result is suggested.