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Quantum Monte Carlo simulations of atom- and molecule-doped helium nanodroplets give us insight into the droplets' atomistic structure, and in particular can provide us with detailed information about the nature of the solvation shell or cage that surrounds the dopant. Recent experimental and theoretical studies suggest that these shells might stabilize ultra-low-density aggregates of weakly interacting species, sometimes called impurity "foams" or "gels", in helium droplets [J. Eloranta, Phys. Rev. B 77, 134301 (2008); A. Prystawik et al., Phys. Rev. A 78, 021202 (2008)]. An improved understanding of the solvation shells surrounding impurities in liquid helium could thus help us understand the stability regimes and spectroscopic signatures of these ultra-low-density impurity foams and gels. In this talk, we present quantum Monte Carlo studies of the solvation shells that surround isolated atoms and weakly interacting pairs of atoms embedded in large helium nanodroplets, and compare the structure of these shells with those predicted from helium density functional theory. If time permits, we will also present some preliminary results for parahydrogen clusters embedded in helium nanodroplets, with particular emphasis on the structural changes that accompany solvation of the clusters in the nanodroplet environment. |
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