Universal description of the rotational-vibrational spectrum of three particles with zero-range interactions

TL;DR

This paper provides a universal framework for describing the rotational-vibrational spectrum of a three-particle system with zero-range interactions, applicable for any mass ratio and angular momentum, with explicit formulas for vibrational states and critical angular momentum values.

Contribution

It introduces a universal function for vibrational energies and critical angular momentum values, extending understanding of three-particle spectra in the zero-range interaction limit.

Findings

Universal scaling laws for vibrational energies and critical angular momentum.

Finite and infinite vibrational states depending on the sign of the scattering length.

Good agreement with numerical calculations for angular momentum greater than 2.

Abstract

A comprehensive universal description of the rotational-vibrational spectrum for two identical particles of mass $m$ and the third particle of the mass $m_1$ in the zero-range limit of the interaction between different particles is given for arbitrary values of the mass ratio $m/m_1$ and the total angular momentum $L$. If the two-body scattering length is positive, a number of vibrational states is finite for $L_c(m/m_1) \le L \le L_b(m/m_1)$, zero for $L>L_b(m/m_1)$, and infinite for $L<L_c(m/m_1)$. If the two-body scattering length is negative, a number of states is either zero for $L \ge L_c(m/m_1)$ or infinite for $L<L_c(m/m_1)$. For a finite number of vibrational states, all the binding energies are described by the universal function $\epsilon_{LN}(m/m_1) = {\cal E}(\xi, \eta)$, where $\xi=\displaystyle\frac{N-1/2}{\sqrt{L(L + 1)}}$, $\eta=\displaystyle\sqrt{\frac{m}{m_1 L (L + 1)}}$,and $N$ is the vibrational quantum number. This scaling dependence is in agreement with the numerical calculations for $L > 2$ and only slightly deviates from those for $L = 1, 2$. The universal description implies that the critical values $L_c(m/m_1)$ and $L_b(m/m_1)$ increase as $0.401 \sqrt{m/m_1}$ and $0.563 \sqrt{m/m_1}$, respectively, while a number of vibrational states for $L \ge L_c(m/m_1)$ is within the range $N \le N_{max} \approx 1.1 \sqrt{L(L+1)}+1/2$.