van der Waals interaction potentials

Abstract

Two-body, three-body and four-body contributions to the van der Waals interaction potential for the ground state of Ne₄ are evaluated within the matrix Hartree-Fock model (self-consistent-field approach within a finite basis set). The calculations are performed on four types of nuclear symmetry: tetrahedral; square planar; rectangular; and C _3v pyramidal. It is demonstrated that the three-body and four-body terms make important contributions to the total van der Waals interaction for these symmetries.