Potential energy curve of N2 revisited

Abstract

Recently generated ground state potential energy curves (PECs) for the nitrogen molecule, as obtained with the reduced multireference (RMR) coupled-cluster (CC) method with singles and doubles (RMR-CCSD), and its version corrected for the secondary triples RMR-CCSD(T), using cc-pVXZ basis sets with X = D, T, and Q, as well as the extrapolated complete basis set (cbs) limit (X. Li and J. Paldus: J. Chem. Phys. 2008, 129, 054104), are compared with both the highly accurate theoretical configuration interaction PEC of Gdanitz (Chem. Phys. Lett. 1998, 283, 253) and analytic PECs obtained by fitting an extensive set of experimental data (R. J. Le Roy et al.: J. Chem. Phys. 2006, 125, 164310). These results are analyzed using a morphing procedure based on the reduced potential curve (RPC) method of Jenč. It is found that an RPC fit of both theoretical potentials can be achieved with only a few parameters. The RMR PECs are found to provide an excellent description of experimentally available vibrational levels, but significantly deviate from those of Gdanitz’s PEC for highly stretched geometries, yet still do provide a qualitatively correct PECs that lie within the region delimited by Le Roy’s analytical PECs.