Introductory Quantum Mechanics
- Textbook: Quantum Chemistry by Donald A. McQuarrie, University Science Books (2008); in addition to course notes and supplementary materials, which will be available to students in class.
In CHEM 356 we will be discussing the ideas and postulates of quantum theory, which forms the underlying basis for all phenomena in the microscopic world. This theoretical framework will lead us to understand deeply some very basic concepts in chemistry and physics. The actual quantitative description of chemical, physical or spectroscopic processes is very complicated of course, and one would have to resort to approximations and computational techniques to obtain reliable results. In this course we will focus on model problems, like the particle in a box, harmonic oscillator, rigid rotor, that can be solved with relatively little effort and which illustrate the nature of the quantum world and that will introduce you to thinking 'quantum'. Moreover, these simple models often lead to surprisingly quantitative understanding of observed excitations of atoms, molecules and materials. A major theme concerns the electronic structure of atoms and simple molecules. Operator techniques will be introduced as a powerful tool to solve a variety of problems in an elegant and uniform manner.
Please remember that the Undergraduate Calendar is always the official source for all course descriptions.