Energy reference in molecular partition functions ($q_{\mathrm{abs}}=e^{-\beta {\epsilon }_0}q$)

If energies are measured upward from a species reference ${\epsilon }_0$, its absolute single-particle sum is $q_{\mathrm{abs}}=e^{-\beta {\epsilon }_0}q$. The ideal-gas chemical potential is then ${\epsilon }_0-k_{B}T\ln (q/N)$. A zero-point factor can be included either in $q$ or in the reference energy, but not both.