Laterally averaged empirical repulsive exponential interaction between carbon atoms in graphite

Abstract

Experimental studies of the scattering of gas molecules by graphite have shown that the attractive London dispersion interactions between non-coplanar carbon atoms must allow for the electronic anisotropy of carbon atoms in graphite. Previous results of such effects are used to evaluate the parameters A and α in a laterally averaged repulsive interaction of the form A exp( - α z) between a carbon atom at a distance z from a basal graphite plane. The constants are evaluated from empirical values of graphitic interlaminar spacing and compressibility.