• 2022-07-26
    Spherical polar coordinates are used to solve the Schrödinger equation for a hydrogen atom because
    A: the Laplacian operator has its simplest form in spherical polar coordinates.
    B: Cartesian coordinates would give particle-in-a-box wavefunctions.
    C: the Schrödinger equation is then separable into 3 ordinary differential equations.
    D: otherwise the atomic orbitals would violate the Pauli exclusion principle.