Smoothed square well potential

The classical square well potential is smoothed with a finite range smoothing function in order to get a new simple strictly finite range form for the phenomenological nuclear potential. The smoothed square well form becomes exactly zero smoothly at a finite distance, in contrast to the Woods-Saxon form. If the smoothing range is four times the diffuseness of the Woods-Saxon shape both the central and the spin-orbit terms of the Woods-Saxon shape are reproduced reasonably well. The bound single-particle energies in a Woods-Saxon potential can be well reproduced with those in the smoothed square well potential. The same is true for the complex energies of the narrow resonances. (orig.)