Abstract

The linear combinations of harmonic oscillator wave functions (LCWV) method is proposed to solve the Schrödinger equation, for a particle of a mass μ moving in a one dimensional double-well potential field, in which, the energy barrier has a gaussian shape. The general double well potential, whether symmetric or not, is constructed from appropriate combinations of Morse-like potentials and a Gaussian function and the problem is solved variationally, using as trial functions, linear combinations of harmonic oscillator wave functions (LCWV) centered at the two minima. The relevant matrix elements are calculated using the Harmonic Oscillator Tensor (HOT) technique. A generalization to multiple well problems is also advanced. © 2006 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.