Solutions to the Painlevé V equation through supersymmetric quantum mechanics

Abstract

In this paper we shall use the algebraic method known as supersymmetric quantum mechanics (SUSY QM) to obtain solutions to the Painlevé V (PV) equation, a second-order nonlinear ordinary differential equation. For this purpose, we will apply first the SUSY QM treatment to the radial oscillator. In addition, we will revisit the polynomial Heisenberg algebras (PHAs) and we will study the general systems ruled by them: for first-order PHAs we obtain the radial oscillator while for third-order PHAs the potential will be determined by solutions to the PV equation. This connection allows us to introduce a simple technique for generating solutions of the PV equation expressed in terms of confluent hypergeometric functions. Finally, we will classify them into several solution hierarchies.