Local electron-electron interaction strength in ferromagnetic nickel determined by spin-polarized positron annihilation

We employ a positron annihilation technique, the spin-polarized two-dimensional angular correlation of annihilation radiation (2D-ACAR), to measure the spin-difference spectra of ferromagnetic nickel. The experimental data are compared with the theoretical results obtained within a combination of the local spin density approximation (LSDA) and the many-body dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT). We find that the self-energy defining the electronic correlations in Ni leads to anisotropic contributions to the momentum distribution. By direct comparison of the theoretical and experimental results we determine the strength of the local electronic interaction U in ferromagnetic Ni as 2.0 ± 0.1 eV.

Quantum Monte Carlo study of a positron in an electron gas

Quantum Monte Carlo calculations of the relaxation energy, pair-correlation function, and annihilating-pair momentum density are presented for a positron immersed in a homogeneous electron gas. We find smaller relaxation energies and contact pair-correlation functions in the important low-density regime than predicted by earlier studies. Our annihilating-pair momentum densities have almost zero weight above the Fermi momentum due to the cancellation of electron-electron and electron-positron correlation effects.