An equation used in wave mechanics (see quantum mechanics) for the wave function of a particle. The time-independent Schrödinger equation is:
where ψ is the wave function, ∇2 the Laplace operator, h the Planck constant, m the particle’s mass, E its total energy, and U its potential energy. It can also be written as:
where H is the Hamiltonian operator. It was devised by Erwin Schrödinger, who was mainly responsible for wave mechanics.