The Influence of Three‐Body Forces on the Lifetime and Stability of Rare Gas Clusters

The formation of clusters in compressed argon and xenon gases is studied with the molecular dynamics simulation technique using two‐body Lennard‐Jones and three‐body Axilrod‐Teller interaction potentials. It is shown that the effect of three‐body interactions is a function of the temperature of the system and increases with decreasing temperature. The occurrence of clusters corresponding to the “magic‐number” n = 13 for xenon is explained in terms of the dispersion forces inherent in the Axilrod‐Teller potential. Computer generated images of stable and unstable Xe13 clusters are presented.