Investigating and improving student understanding of the basics for a system of identical particles.

We discuss an investigation of students' difficulties with systems of non-interacting identical particles. The investigation was carried out in advanced quantum mechanics courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels by administering free-response and multiple-choice questions and conducting individual interviews with students. This research on student difficulties was used as a guide to develop and evaluate a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) that helps students develop a functional understanding of the concepts necessary for determining the many-particle Hamiltonian and stationary state wavefunctions for a system of non-interacting identical particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]