A Cartesian-3j Framework for Machine Learning Interatomic Potentials

Summary

arXiv:2512.16882v2 Announce Type: replace-cross Abstract: Machine learning interatomic potentials (MLIPs) have brought substantial gains in the extrapolation capability in computational chemistry. However, most equivariant models are typically built with spherical tensors (STs), while Cartesian tensor formulations remain less developed despite their natural alignment with atomic coordinates and tensorial targets. In this work, we develop a Cartesian framework for irreducible Cartesian tensors (ICTs) by introduce the \texttt{Cartesian-3j} symbol and Cartesian Generalized Clebsch-Gordan Coefficients, which serve as direct analogues of the \texttt{Wigner-3j} symbol and Generalized Clebsch-Gordan coefficients defined for ST coupling.