Solution to 1986 Problem 90


The allowed energies in an infinite square well are
\begin{align*}E_n = E_1 n^2\end{align*}
The wavefunction shown corresponds to n = 2 because it has two local extrema. Therefore, the wavefunction of the ground state is 2/2^2 \mbox{ eV} = \boxed{1/2 \mbox{ eV}}. Therefore, (C) is the correct answer.


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