Ground state of the fermion one-component plasma: A Monte Carlo study in two and three dimensions

We have performed fermion Monte Carlo variational calculations to determine the equation of state of the uniform electron one-component plasma in two and three dimensions. The ground-state excess energies calculated by the Monte Carlo method are very precise and in agreement with those of other calculations in the metallic density range and in the very-low-density Wigner crystals. Three phases have been investigated: the Wigner crystal, the normal or unpolarized fluid, and the polarized fluid. The Wigner crystal has the lowest energy for r_s>67 in three dimensions and r_s>33 in two dimensions. The totally polarized quantum fluid is stable for 26<r_s<67 in three dimensions and for 13<r_s<33 in two dimensions, and the normal or unpolarized fluid is stable at higher densities r_s<26 in three dimensions and r_s<13 in two dimensions. A pseudopotential with no adjustable parameters, derived from the random-phase approximation, is found to give excellent energies. The present results lend support to earlier conjectures that the ground state of the electron gas will be spin polarized at intermediate densities.