The structure of the atomic helium trimers: halos and Efimov states

Abstract

The Faddeev equations for the atomic helium-trimer systems are solved\nnumerically with high accuracy both for the most sophisticated realistic\npotentials available and for simple phenomenological potentials. An efficient\nnumerical procedure is described. The large-distance asymptotic behavior,\ncrucial for weakly bound three-body systems, is described almost analytically\nfor arbitrary potentials. The Efimov effect is especially considered. The\ngeometric structures of the bound states are quantitatively investigated. The\naccuracy of the schematic models and previous computations is comparable, i.e.\nwithin 20% for the spatially extended states and within 40% for the smaller\n^4He-trimer ground state.\n