Theoretical investigations of the structures and binding energies of Be(sub n) and Mg(sub n) (n = 3-5) clusters

Abstract

Researchers determined the equilibrium geometries and binding energies of Be and Mg trimers, tetramers and pentamers using single and double excitation coupled cluster (CCSD) and complete active space self-consistent-field (CASSCF) multireference configuration interaction (MRCI) wave functions in conjunction with extended atomic basis sets. Best estimates of the cluster binding energies are 24, 83 and 110 kcal/mole for Be3, Be4 and Be5; and 9, 31 and 41 kcal/mole for Mg3, Mg4 and Mg5, respectively. A comparison of the MRCI and CCSD results shows that even the best single-reference approach (limited to single and double excitations) is not capable of quantitative accuracy in determining the binding energies of Be and Mg clusters