Communication: Heavy Rydberg states: The H+H− system

Abstract

Heavy Rydberg states are analogs of electronic Rydberg states, but with the electron replaced by a much heavier ion. We calculate ab initio the extremely long-range vibrational H(+)H(-) heavy Rydberg states in H(2), and compare these to recent experiments. The calculated resonance positions and widths agree well with experiment, but we predict additional sharp interloper resonances corresponding to vibrational states trapped inside the barrier on potential energy curve 7 (1)Σ(g)(+).