Theory of Solid Neon at 0°K

A quantum-mechanical variational calculation of the energy per particle, the equilibrium nearest-neighbor distance, and the pressure-volume relationship for solid neon at 0°K is performed. Use is made of a Jastrow-type trial wave function, a phenomenological Mie-Lennard-Jones 12-6 potential, and a cluster expansion evaluation of the energy expectation value. It is found that correlation effects are negligible at equilibrium, contrary to the speculations of some authors, and that good agreement with the experimental data can be achieved if one of the interparticle potential parameters, $\epsilon$, is changed by a small amount from its accepted gas-phase value. This parameter change is discussed.