Force analysis of diatomic interactions

In the preceding sections we have studied diatomic interactions via U(R). However, the study of diatomic interactions can also be carried out in terms of the force F(R) instead of the energy U(R), where R denotes the internuclear separation. Though there are several methods for the calculation of the force, the electrostatic theorem of Hellmann (1937) and Feynman (1939) is of particular interest in this section, since the theorem provides a simple and pictorial method for the analysis and interpretation of interatomic interactions based on the three-dimensional distribution of the electron density p(r). An important property of the Hellmann-Feyn-man (HF) theorem is that underlying concepts are common to both the exact and approximate electron densities (Epstein et al., 1967, and references therein). The force analysis of diatomic interactions is a useful semiclassical and therefore intuitively clear approach. And this results in the analysis of diatomic interactions via force functions instead of potential ones (Clinton and Hamilton, 1960 Goodisman, 1963). At the same time, in the authors opinion, it serves as a powerful additional instrument to reexamine model diatomic potential functions. 

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