Electron-ion correlation in liquid metals

A new quantitative method for evaluating the ion-electron correlation functions in liquid metals is proposed by using the measured structural data of X-ray and neutron diffraction with high accuracy. The method has been applied to liquid Bi and Sn and the radial distribution of valence electrons around the ion has been obtained. The ionic radii for Bi5+ and Sn4+ can also be derived from these results and they agree very well with those proposed by Pauling. (author)