Gaussian (software)

Gaussian (software)

Gaussian is a computer program for computational chemistry initially released in 1970 by John Pople and his research group at Carnegie-Mellon University as Gaussian 70. It has been continuously updated since then. The name originates from Pople's use of Gaussian orbitals to speed up calculations compared to those using Slater-type orbitals, a choice made to improve performance on the limited computing capacities of then-current computer hardware for Hartree-Fock calculations. The current version of the program is Gaussian 09. Originally available through the Quantum Chemistry Program Exchange, it was later licensed out of Carnegie Mellon University, and since 1987 has been developed and licensed by Gaussian, Inc.

Gaussian quickly became a popular and widely-used electronic structure program. Prof. Pople and his students and post-docs were among those who pushed the development of the package, including cutting-edge research in quantum chemistry and other fields.