Below are the course objectives for the 412-413 sequence:
- Develop more sophisticated mental models of atoms, chemical bonding, and atomic and molecular spectroscopy grounded in the fundamentals of quantum theory; Develop more sophisticated mental models of chemical and physical change, grounded in the fundamentals of thermodynamics;
- be able to apply the concepts, methods and techniques of quantum chemistry and thermodynamics to simple chemical systems and make predictions for these systems;
- be able to use molecular symmetry as an aid for solving problems related to chemical bonding and molecular spectroscopy;
- Have the ability to use simple physical systems as models for understanding more complex systems;
- Appreciate the role of kinetic studies in chemistry and across the physical and life sciences;
- Be able to derive rate laws for simple chemical processes from proposed mechanisms and design kinetic experiments to test the validity of these mechanisms;
- Appreciate the role of statistical mechanics in linking microscopic systems with macroscopic thermodynamic properties;
- Use statistical thermodynamics to calculate thermodynamic properties for simple chemical systems;
- acquire specific skills necessary for future work in science or science-related areas, whether it be in
this course, other advanced courses, graduate school, medical or business professions, or the industrial
laboratory. Specifically, the student will acquire or continue to enhance his/her:
- facility with computer spreadsheets and graphics, for transforming raw data into quantities of conceptual or theoretical interest;
- capacity to do algebra efficiently and accurately;
- ability to use calculus with confidence and apply these concepts to problems in quantum mechanics, spectroscopy, thermodynamics and chemical kinetics;
- ability to approach unfamiliar physical problems and identify what conceptual and factual background information is needed to solve the problem;
- ability to simplify physical problems by making physically reasonable, justifiable, and testable assumptions;
- critical analytic thinking and logical reasoning skills which are of great value in formal scientific research and most other areas of life;
- acquire a basic vocabulary relating to computational chemistry, appreciate both the power and limitations of this type of chemistry, and be able to interpret routine computational results in the chemical literature.