Valence Forces in Lithium and Beryllium

Abstract

With the nodeless wave functions of Guillemin and Zener, the method of Heitler and London is applied to determine how two normal lithium atoms, and also two normal beryllium atoms, influence each other (as a function of the distance). For the diatomic lithium molecule in the ground state, the equilibrium distance is calculated to be 2.4A, and the heat of dissociation to be 1.09 volts. The experimental values are 2.67A (Harvey and Jenkins) and 1.14 volts (Loomis and Nusbaum), respectively. Two normal beryllium atoms repel each other.