The n-p pairing Hamiltonian is an extension of the usual pairing Hamiltonian with n-p pairing in both the T=0 and T=1 channels. Investigating the role of large diagonal matrix elements, we have found that reasonable values for these matrix elements provide a good explanation of the Wigner energy anomaly as well as for the large discrepancy between shell spacings deduced from neutron separation energies and the shell spacings given by Woods-Saxon energy level calculations.

After explaining the above effects, we shall examine the effects of large diagonal matrix elements on excited states and their collectivity. The technique that we use for calculating excited states is a new one, the variational configuration method. We apply it to the n-p pairing problem.

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