  A microscopic model for three-cluster configurations in light nuclei is
presented. It uses an expansion in terms of Faddeev components for which the
dynamic eqations are derived. The model is designed to investigate binary
channel processes in a compound system. Gaussian and oscillator bases are used
to expand the wave function and to represent appropriate boundary conditions.
We study the effect of cluster polarization on ground and resonance states of
7Be, and on the astrophysical S-factor of the reaction 6Li(p,3He)4He.
