Potential decomposition in the multiconfiguration time-dependent hartree study of the confined H atom

Abstract

The Coulomb potential characterising the interaction between an electron and a proton in a spherical cavity has been optimally decomposed into a sum-of-products form, where the products are functions in one degree of freedom. The problem is a six-dimensional one, formulated in the three spherical polar coordinates describing the proton and the three ones describing the electron. As a result, each term in the potential is a product of six functions, one for each coordinate. This reduction of the potential allows the treatment of the problem in a multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree study of the energy levels of the confined H atom. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.