Fundamental constants and tests of theory in Rydberg states of one-electron ions

Published

March 19, 2010

Author(s)

Ulrich D. Jentschura, Peter Mohr, Joseph N. Tan

Abstract

The nature of the theory of circular Rydberg states of hydrogenlike ions allows highly-accurate predictions to be made for energy levels. In particular, uncertainties arising from the problematic nuclear size correction which beset low angular-momentum states are negligibly small for the high angular-momentum states. The largest remaining source of uncertainty can be addressed with the help of quantum electrodynamics (QED) calculations, including a new nonperturbative result reported here. More stringent tests of theory and an improved determination of the Rydberg constant may be possible if predictions can be compared with precision frequency measurements in this regime. The diversity of information can be increased by utilizing a variety of combinations of ions and Ryberg states to determine fundamental constants and test theory.

Citation

Journal of Physics B-Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics

Volume

43

Issue

7

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

Local Download

Keywords

Rydberg states, fundamental constants, QED

Citation

Jentschura, U. , Mohr, P. and Tan, J. (2010), Fundamental constants and tests of theory in Rydberg states of one-electron ions, Journal of Physics B-Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=903759 (Accessed October 26, 2025)