Proton-neutron coupling in the Gamow shell model: The lithium chain

The shell model in the complex-k plane (the so-called Gamow shell model) has recently been formulated and applied to the structure of weakly bound, neutron-rich nuclei. The completeness relations of Newton and Berggren, which apply to the neutron case, are strictly valid for finite-range potentials. However, for long-range potentials, such as the Coulomb potential for protons, for which the arguments based on the Mittag-Leffler theory do not hold, the completeness still needs to be demonstrated. This has been done in this paper, both analytically and numerically. The generalized Berggren relations are then used in the first Gamow shell model study of nuclei having both valence neutrons and protons, namely, the lithium chain. The single-particle basis used is that of the Hartree-Fock-inspired potential generated by a finite-range residual interaction. The effect of isospin mixing in excited unbound states is discussed.