This book provides a non-mathematical and highly visual account of the concepts of quantum mechanics widely encountered in chemistry and related disciplines. Entries - ordered alphabetically - range in length from one paragraph to several pages, and describe the physical significance of each topic with simplicity and precision. Each entry is extensively cross-referenced and ends with a guide to sources of further information. This new work continues the tradition of the first edition, which quickly established itself among students and teachers as a rich source of clear, concise explanations of quantum concepts. The text has been completely rewritten - all topics have been brought up to date, and there are many more illustrations and numerous new entries. The book should be helpful to students for its brief non-mathematical summaries of key concepts, to instructors as a source of explanations, illustrations, and references, and to all practicing scientists who need a succinct reminder of a topic. The work is aimed principally at students and teachers of chemistry, and practising chemists who are not quantum specialists; it should also prove useful to physicists and biologists, and an accessible account of quantum ideas for the interested general reader.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
From reviews of the first edition `An excellent book ... sprightly, non-pedantic, often a delight to read ... the book is a gold mine.' Journal of Chemical Education `His marriage of extraordinarily good English with a marvellous grounding in the physical sciences has produced a clear, simple (yet profound) work which will grace any science reference collection. The bibliography ... cannot be faulted; the index is a marvel.' The New York Public Library
'it provides a wealth of concise, non-mathematical descriptions of many of the key ideas used when chemists talk about the shape and structure of atoms and molecules ... this is another marvellous book by Peter Atkins ... It offers something for all involved in chemical education, and I expect it to find widespread use by both students and their teachers ... this second edition of 'Quanta' is quite excellent and a very welcome addition to the chemical education literature.' Faraday Transactions
'"Quanta" will be invluable for students, but also to all practising scientists searching for an interesting, accessible account of almost any aspect of quantum chemistry. This simple yet profound explanation of the concepts of quantum chemistry will be useful for any science reference collection, and can be recommended for a detailed study. Book Reviews
'The standard of production is remarkably good ... In this respect it stands out from the flood of books that are poor value for money ... it can be strongly recommended as an aid to finding one's way around the field and as a reference manual to use in conjunction with other reading.' Wolfram Sander, Institut fur Organische Chemie der Technischen Universitat Braunschweig, Angewandte Chemie, 31/8 1992
'This is a richly illustrated compilation of non-mathematical descriptions of the concepts and tools of quantum mechanics. The book is recommended to all practising chemists.' Structural Chemistry, Vol. 3, No. 3, 1992
'a useful source book for anyone with an interest in the fundamentals of the structure of atoms, molecules and solids ... Quanta is an excellent attempt to portray the quantum world in a way in which the beauty of our current understanding of the interplay of light, electrons and nuclei is made accessible to a wide readership' Professor G. Duxbury, Strathclyde University, Contemporary Physics, Vol. 33, No. 4 24/06/1993 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
'it provides a wealth of concise, non-mathematical descriptions of many of the key ideas used when chemists talk about the shape and structure of atoms and molecules ... this is another marvellous book by Peter Atkins ... It offers something for all involved in chemical education, and I expect it to find widespread use by both students and their teachers ... this second edition of 'Quanta' is quite excellent and a very welcome addition to the chemical education literature.' Faraday Transactions
'"Quanta" will be invluable for students, but also to all practising scientists searching for an interesting, accessible account of almost any aspect of quantum chemistry. This simple yet profound explanation of the concepts of quantum chemistry will be useful for any science reference collection, and can be recommended for a detailed study. Book Reviews
'The standard of production is remarkably good ... In this respect it stands out from the flood of books that are poor value for money ... it can be strongly recommended as an aid to finding one's way around the field and as a reference manual to use in conjunction with other reading.' Wolfram Sander, Institut fur Organische Chemie der Technischen Universitat Braunschweig, Angewandte Chemie, 31/8 1992
'This is a richly illustrated compilation of non-mathematical descriptions of the concepts and tools of quantum mechanics. The book is recommended to all practising chemists.' Structural Chemistry, Vol. 3, No. 3, 1992
'a useful source book for anyone with an interest in the fundamentals of the structure of atoms, molecules and solids ... Quanta is an excellent attempt to portray the quantum world in a way in which the beauty of our current understanding of the interplay of light, electrons and nuclei is made accessible to a wide readership' Professor G. Duxbury, Strathclyde University, Contemporary Physics, Vol. 33, No. 4 24/06/1993 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
P. W. Atkins, Professor of Chemistry, University of Oxford, and Fellow, Lincoln College, Oxford.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Quantum reference book I've seen,
By Wilhelm R. Hernandez (Puerto Rico) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Quanta: A Handbook of Concepts (Oxford Chemistry Series Ocs Op) (Paperback)
I am a physics graduate student and I constantly read quantum physics books as this is my prefered field. For this reason I need quantum reference books for those hard-to-grasp concepts. I recently bought Quanta: a handbook of concetps from P.W. Atkins and let me tell you this one is the best. This book explains with simple words how most things work in the quantum world without having to resort to complex mathematical equations and in a very visual way. In comparasion to Q is for Quantum from John Gribin, this book is way much better. I strongly recomend it. wrhernandez@hotmail.com
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Good Glossary for Studying Atomic and Quantum Physics,
By David A Michaels (U of Arizona) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Quanta: A Handbook of Concepts (Oxford Chemistry Series Ocs Op) (Paperback)
Atkins has written an alternative approach to revealing quantum physics, using no math, pictorial representations, and concise explanations, while still containing the common equations and formulas (in easy referenced boxed figures); he has offered a fresh text, in the style of a dictioanry, which is a good reference for a student and a practical handbook for the practitioner or teacher. This is a good (and much needed) addition to the pedagogy in the field. But, it could have been even better if; it had more material on Nuclear and Solid State physics, substituted the questions (found after each definition) for examples and/or worked out problems, and included a quick refernce by catagory.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent help with quantum concepts,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Quanta: A Handbook of Concepts (Oxford Chemistry Series Ocs Op) (Paperback)
Peter Atkins created a gem with this book. Concepts that may not have been clear, with only the mathematical derivation, are expertly explained. I found it incredibly useful and helpful while writing my research proposal for my PhD process. For that proposal, I was expected to research a closely allied area of research, but not one that resembled my own research. When I ran into the "vocabulary fog" that exists in the research literature of my field (physical chemistry), with this book close at hand, I could get my head around some of the concepts before going on to read more thoroughly on a specific topic.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Listmania!
|
|
