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Structural Chemistry - CHE4805

Honours Year module NQF level: 8 Credits: 12
Module presented in English Module presented online
Purpose: The successful student will be able to: apply group theory principles to classify molecules and bulk materials according to their symmetry; to describe the regular arrangement of crystals in terms of the symmetry of the arrangement and explain how the arrangement is described quantitatively; to describe the way in which the constituents of solids are held together in terms of interactions and discuss the characteristic properties that result from each of these interactions; to derive symmetry-adapted molecular orbitals and their properties; to derive the selection rules that govern spectroscopic transitions and determine symmetry properties of normal vibrational modes. The student will also be able to explain the basic principles of vibrational spectroscopy and X-Ray diffraction and describe how diffraction patterns can be interpreted in terms of the distribution of electron density. The successful student will have a sound knowledge of the current and trending applications of structural chemistry and the industries in which these applications are used. Finally, the successful student will have an understanding of basic crystallography, crystal engineering, and their real-life current applications.