Integral equation study of the square-well fluid for varying attraction range

In the present work, the properties of the square-well fluid (SW) for varying attraction range are investigated in the framework of the integral equation method. The pair-correlation functions are calculated for a wide range of the potential attraction including the colloidal regime, and the liquid–vapour phase diagram. The critical parameters are determined for attraction ranges spanning from the van der Waals limit down to the metastable region. An overall good agreement is found compared to available simulation data and several theoretical approaches.