Shape resonance

In quantum mechanics, a shape resonance, in contrast to a Feshbach resonance, is a resonance which is not turned into a bound state if the coupling between some degrees of freedom and the degrees of freedom associated to the fragmentation (reaction coordinates) are set to zero.

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Of course in one-dimensional systems, resonances are shape resonances. In a system with more than one degree of freedom, this definition makes sense only if the separable model, which supposes the two groups of degrees of freedom uncoupled, is a meaningful approximation. When the coupling becomes large, the situation is much less clear.

In the case of atomic and molecular electronic structure problems, it is well known that the self-consistent field (SCF) approximation is relevant at least as a starting point of more elaborate methods. The Slater determinants built from SCF orbitals (atomic or molecular orbitals) are shape resonances if only one electronic transition is required to emit one electron.

A special kind of shape resonance is core-excited shape resonance.