Related papers: Fine-Structure Constant Connects the Polarizabilit…
The atomic dipole polarizability, $\alpha$, and the van der Waals (vdW) radius, $R_{\rm vdW}$, are two key quantities to describe vdW interactions between atoms in molecules and materials. Until now, they have been determined independently…
A simple and computationally efficient scheme to calculate approximate imaginary-frequency dependent polarizability, hence asymptotic van der Waals coefficient, within density functional theory is proposed. The dynamical dipolar…
The structure and stability of atomic and molecular systems with van der Waals (vdW) bonding are often determined by the interplay between attractive dispersion interactions and repulsive interactions caused by electron confinement. Arising…
A cluster consisting of many atoms or molecules may be considered, in some circustances, to be a single large molecule with a well defined polarizability. Once the polarizability of such a cluster is known, one can evaluate certain…
The 1%-accurate calculations of the van der Waals interaction between an atom and a cavity wall are performed in the separation region from 3 nm to 150 nm. The cases of metastable He${}^{\ast}$ and Na atoms near the metal, semiconductor or…
Equilibrium polyethylene crystal structure, cohesive energy, and elastic constants are calculated by density-functional theory applied with a recently proposed density functional (vdW-DF) for general geometries [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 246401…
A possible explanation is offered for the longstanding mystery surrounding the meaning of the fine structure constant. The reasoning is based on a discrete self-similar cosmological paradigm that has shown promise in explaining the general…
Light traveling through the vacuum interacts with vacuum fluctuations similarly to the way that light traveling through a dielectric interacts with ordinary matter. And just as the permittivity of a dielectric can be calculated, the…
The van der Waals density functional (vdW-DF) of Dion et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 246401 (2004)] is a promising approach for including dispersion in approximate density functional theory exchange-correlation functionals. Indeed, an…
The fine-structure constant alpha approximately 1/137 is traditionally regarded as a fundamental dimensionless parameter. I argue instead that alpha is a scaled quantity that arises only where the structural scales contributed by classical…
Ubiquitous van der Waals (vdW) interactions play a subtle yet crucial role in determining the precise atomic arrangements in solids, particularly in molecular crystals where these weak forces are the primary link between constituent…
Recently, we have proposed the existence of a universal relation between the maximal electric charge and total mass of any weakly self-gravitating object: $Z\leq Z^*={\alpha}^{-1/3}A^{2/3}$, where $Z$ is the number of protons, $A$ is the…
Recent updated results of quasar spectra suggested a 3.9$\sigma$ significance of spatial variation of the fine-structure constant. Theoretically, it is important to examine whether the fine-structure constant, as a fundamental constant in…
A phenomenological model is proposed to explain the recent observed cosmological variation of the fine structure constant as an effect of the quantum vacuum, assuming a flat universe with cosmological constant $\Lambda$ in the cases…
The van der Waals coefficients for the alkali-metal atoms from Na to Fr interacting in their ground states, are calculated using relativistic ab initio methods. The accuracy of the calculations is estimated by also evaluating atomic static…
The fine-structure constant {\alpha}, the dimensionless number that represents the strength of electromagnetic coupling in the limit of sufficiently low energy interactions, is the crucial fundamental physical parameter that governs a…
The van der Waals (VDW) equation of state is a simple and popular model to describe the pressure function in equilibrium systems of particles with both repulsive and attractive interactions. This equation predicts an existence of a…
Nanostructures can be bound together at equilibrium by the van der Waals (vdW) effect, a small but ubiquitous many-body attraction that presents challenges to density functional theory. How does the binding energy depend upon the size or…
We call attention to a simple analogy between atomic physics and cosmology. Both have two characteristic length scales. In atomic physics the lengths are the Compton wavelength of the electron and the Bohr radius; the ratio of these two…
Calculation of the Dirac hydrogen atom spectrum in the framework of dynamical fine structure constant (alpha) variability discloses a small departure in the laboratory from Sommerfeld's formula for the fine structure shifts, possibly…