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This article is about the physics of atomic lithium. For other properties, see
Lithium.
A lithium atom is an
atom of the
chemical element
lithium. Stable lithium is composed of three electrons bound by the
electromagnetic force to a nucleus containing three
protons along with either three or four
neutrons, depending on the
isotope, held together by the
strong force. Similarly to the case of the
helium atom, a closed-form solution to the
Schrödinger equation for the lithium atom has not been found. However, various approximations, such as the
Hartree–Fock method, can be used to estimate the
ground state energy and
wavefunction of the atom. The
quantum defect is a value that describes the deviation from
hydrogenic energy levels.
Further reading