A quantum exactly solvable nonlinear oscillator with quasi-harmonic behaviour (Q863949)

A second order nonlinear ordinary differential equation, previously studied by \textit{P. M. Mathews} and \textit{M. Lakshmanan} [Q. Appl. Math. 32, 215--218 (1974; Zbl 0284.34046)], is studied here on a quantum level. The study is motivated by two effects. (1) The system is \(\lambda\)-dependent in such a way that for \(\lambda\to 0\) the ordinary harmonic oscillator is recovered. (2) For \(\lambda\neq 0\) the Lagrangian contains an \(x\)-dependent kinetic term, and thus a well-known ambiguity in the quantization procedure arises. This is resolved using a certain prescription motivated by the existence of a Killing vector and an invariant measure on the real line which is then used to construct the Hilbert space. Therefore, the adjoint of an operator takes an unusual form and so does the momentum operator. The spectrum is discrete and the eigenfunctions of the Hamiltonian are found in terms of generalized Hermite polynomials multiplied by a common factor.