Path-integral calculation of the third virial coefficient of quantum gases at low temperatures

Abstract

We derive path-integral expressions for the second and third virial coefficients of monatomic quantum gases. Unlike previous work that considered only Boltzmann statistics, we include exchange effects (Bose-Einstein or Fermi-Dirac statistics). We use state-of-the-art pair and three-body potentials to calculate the third virial coefficient of 3He and 4He in the temperature range 2.6-24.5561 K. We obtain uncertainties smaller than those of the limited experimental data. Inclusion of exchange effects is necessary to obtain accurate results below about 7 K.