| Abstract: | The direct variational method is used to estimate some interesting physical properties of the He atom and the Li+ ion confined within impenetrable spheroidal boxes. A comparative investigation of the ground‐state energy, pressure, polarizability, dipole, and quadrupole moments with those of the He atom inside boxes with paraboloidal walls is made. The overall results show a similar qualitative behavior. However, for Li+ there are quantitative differences on such properties due to its major nuclear charge, as expected. The trial wave function is constructed as a product of two hydrogenic wave functions adapted to the geometry of the confining boxes. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Quant Chem 77: 509–515, 2000 |
