title: Communication: Nonexistence of a critical point within the Kirkwood superposition approximation.
abstract: An analytic argument is given to show that the application of the Kirkwood superposition approximation to the description of fluid correlation functions precludes the existence of a critical point. The argument holds irrespective of the dimension of the system and the specific form of the interaction potential and settles a long-standing controversy surrounding the nature of the critical behavior predicted within the approximation.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Theoretical Physics, Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, Hoza 69, 00-681 Warsaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Jarosław
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Piasecki
authors.forename: Piotr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Szymczak
authors.forename: John J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Kozak