Ch 361: Physical Chemistry I
Text for Fall 2018: Quantum Chemistry (2nd edition only) by D.A. McQuarrie. See http://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Chemistry-Donald-A-McQuarrie/dp/1891389505 and http://www.uscibooks.com/mcqqc2.htm .
Required for all chemical engineering majors, this course in quantum mechanics and molecular spectroscopy is taken during the junior year after having completed a semester of "introductory" physical chemistry (see Ch 160), a year of organic chemistry, three courses in physics (including modern physics), two years of calculus, and linear algebra. Students are simultaneously taking a laboratory course in instrumental analysis. A series of applied quantum chemistry projects gives students a firm grounding in the methods, language, logistics, and algorithmic approaches involved in the use of quantum mechanics to predict molecular structures, spectra, and properties. A brief introduction to statistical mechanics is also included. The course is sometimes chosen as an elective by students in other majors (typically EE, ME, and BSE majors).