Publication at Faculty of Mathematics and Physics |
2021
Abstract
We have derived the complete formula for the alpha(7) m contribution to energy levels of an arbitrary triplet state of the helium atom, performed numerical calculations for the 2 S-3 and 2 P-3 states, and thus improved the theoretical accuracy of ionization energies of these states by more than an order of magnitude. Using the nuclear charge radius extracted from the muonic helium Lamb shift, we obtain the theoretical prediction in excellent agreement with the measured 2 S-3 - 2 P-3 transition energy [X.
Zheng et al., Phys. Rev.
Lett. 119, 263002 (2017)]. At the same time, we observe significant discrepancies with experiments for the 2 S-3 - 3 D-3 and 2 P-3 - 3(3)D transitions.