Where does one learn about theoretical chemistry?
Most chemistry students in colleges and universities take classes in introductory chemistry, organic, analytical, inorganic, physical, and bio- chemistry. It is extremely rare for students to encounter a class that has “theoretical chemistry” in its title. This book is intended to illustrate to students that the subject of theoretical chemistry pervades most if not all of the other classes she/he takes in an undergraduate chemistry curriculum. It is also intended to offer students a modern introduction to the field of theoretical chemistry and to illustrate how it has evolved into a discipline of its own and now stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the traditional experimental sub-disciplines of chemical science. I have tried to write this book so it could be used in any of several ways: 1. As a text book that could be used to learn the quantum mechanics and molecular spectroscopy components of a typical junior-level physical chemistry class, including an overview of point group symmetry.
