Potential Energy Surface and Bound States of Ne-Li₂⁺(X²Σ_g⁺) van der Waals Complex Based on Ab Initio Calculations

Theoretical studies of the potential energy surface and vibrational bound states calculations were performed for the ground state of the Ne-Li₂⁺(X²Σ_g⁺) van der Waals (vdW) complex. The intermolecular interactions were investigated by using an accurate monoconfigurational RCCSD(T) method and large basis sets (aug-cc-pVnZ, n = T, Q, 5), extrapolated to the complete basis set (CBS) limit. In turn, the obtained raw data from RCCSD(T)/CBS(Q5) calculations were numerically interpolated using the Morse + vdW model and the Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Space (RKHS) polynomial method to generate analytic expressions for the 2D-PES. The RKHS interpolated PES was then used to assess the bound states of the Ne-Li₂⁺(X²Σ_g⁺) system through nuclear quantum calculations. By studying the aspect of the potential energy surface, the analysis sheds light on the behavior of the Ne-Li₂⁺(X²Σ_g⁺) complex and its interactions between repulsive and attractive forces with other particles. By examining the vibrational states and wave functions of the system, the researchers were able to gain a better understanding of the behavior of the Ne-Li₂⁺(X²Σ_g⁺) complex. The calculated radial and angular distributions for all even and odd symmetries are discussed in detail. We observe that the radial distributions exhibit a more complicated nodal structure, representing stretching vibrational behavior in the neon atom along its radial coordinate. For the highest bound states, the situation is very different, and the energies surpass the angular barrier.