INTERACTION BETWEEN NEUTRAL ATOMS AND HOMOPOLAR BINDING ACCORDING TO QUANTUM MECHANICS

The equilibrium of forces between neutral atoms shows a characteristic quantum-mechanical ambiguity. This ambiguity seems to be suitable for describing the different behaviour seen in experience: for hydrogen, for instance, the possibility of a homopolar binding and elastic reflection; however, for noble gases only the latter. These effects appear as first-order effects of about the right size. In the selection and discussion of the several types of behaviour the Pauli principle is also valid here, applied to systems of several atoms.