Molecular Quantum Mechanics [Paperback]

P. W. Atkins (Author), R. S. Friedman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 1999 | ISBN-10: 019855947X | ISBN-13: 978-0198559474 | Edition: 3

Molecular Quantum Mechanics established itself as a classic as soon as the original edition appeared. Maintaining the important and essential spirit of the earlier editions, this third edition remains in the forefront of its field. The book has been entirely rewritten to present the subject more clearly than ever before, and the use of two-color art helps to make the text even more accessible. The text remains unique in the range of topics it covers, from the foundations of quantum mechancis to applications such as spectroscopy and the electric and magnetic properties of matter. Two entirely new chapters have been added to this third edition. One is an introduction to computational techniques in quantum chemistry and the other is an introduction on scattering theory. Anyone teaching courses using quantum mechanics, particularly quantum chemistry, will not only find this volume authoritative but highly approachable as well.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a truly outstanding text. Beautifully done."--Russell Bowers, University of Florida, Gainesville

"Very thorough text. Very high quality. Clear, concise, and illustrative. An excellent teaching and learning tool."--Stewart F. Bush, University of North Carolina, Charlotte

About the Author

P. W. Atkins, Professor of Chemistry, University of Oxford, and Fellow, Lincoln College, Oxford. R. S. Friedman, Professor of Chemistry, Purdue University, Fort Wayne.

Product Details

• Paperback: 545 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press; 3 edition (October 7, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 019855947X
• ISBN-13: 978-0198559474
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,258,615 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #83 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Chemistry > Physical & Theoretical > Quantum Chemistry

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not for beginners or even someone with some quantum background, October 9, 2007

By 

J. A. Hansen "kraute und ruben" (Lincoln, NE USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Molecular Quantum Mechanics (Paperback)

This text is not for someone that is starting out in the subject, or even for someone looking to get more into quantum chemistry. This is a book for someone already fairly familiar with quantum and particularly quantum chemistry.
My main issue with this book is that it's way too much information that is not covered in enough detail to give any insight into the methods that are presented. The examples that he uses to illustrate an idea rarely if ever can be generalized to other cases and for someone not already comfortable with this material it will be more than a challenge. I often found myself reaching for McQuarrie's Quantum Chemistry text as well as Griffiths's Quantum mechanics text to help clarify what was presented in this book.
The questions at the end of the chapter often are confusing and any hint that is given only makes the problem more obscure. What makes it worse is that equations that are cited in the hints are often wrong and unless you know what you're doing you will have a hard time figuring out what they're hinting at. Many of the examples have mistakes and typos in them, and they're not trivial most of the time. For example, in Chapter six they attempt to walk you through group theory. In one of the examples showing you how to get an irreducible representation from a reducible one they mix up the last two rows using the little orthogonality theorem.
Several of the character tables in the back of the book are wrong as well. This can make several of the problems at the end of chapters more than a little challenging.
If you're looking for a good quantum chemistry textbook, this is not it. Even putting the typos aside there is too little information in the book for it to stand on its own as anything useful to learn from. I recommend McQaurrie (both undergraduate and graduate texts) or Levine. Griffiths's quantum mechanics text is a useful reference no matter which text you use.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Quantum Mechanics in Chemistry, September 14, 2000

By 

Matthew M. Yau "Voracious reader" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Molecular Quantum Mechanics (Paperback)

I cannot say that this is a strict quantum mechanics text that would be used for a quantum physics course, for the absence of core idea like operator mechanics, ladder operators and the such. Yet "Molecular Quantum Mechanics" definitely shines and has proven itself to be a much better (in details, explanations, readability) text than "Physical Chemistry" written by the same author.

"Molecular Quantum Mechanics" focuses on aspects of quantum mechanics in chemistry, especially in applications on spectroscopy (infrared and Raman) which roots in the ideas of rotation, vibration, anharmonicity, and centrifugal distortion. It also discusses advanced topics like nonlinear spectroscopy and computational chemistry. The book is written in thorough details and a very organized manner. I recommend "Molecular Quantum Mechanics" along with McQuarrie's "Physical Chemistry: Molecular Appraoch" for anyone who would like to learn about quantum chemistry.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent source of information!, June 2, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Molecular Quantum Mechanics (Hardcover)

I definitely recommend this text for anyone interested in theoretical chemistry and qunatum mechanics. It presents material which assumes the reader is familiar with multivariate vector calculus and the basics of quantum theory. The book is excellent in that it presents practically every facet of quantum chemistry in a cohesive manner which widens the reader's understanding and appreciation of the subject.