Physical Chemistry

Book Description

Ira N. Levine's fifth edition of Physical Chemistry provides students with an in-depth fundamental treatment of physical chemistry. At the same time, the treatment is made easy to follow by giving full step-by-step derivations, clear explanations and by avoiding advanced mathematics unfamiliar to students. Necessary math and physics have thorough review sections. Worked examples are followed by a practice exercise.

Customer Reviews:

Very good introduction to physical chemistry.......2007-07-23

A previous reviewer stated that physical chemistry is complicated. As a retired NASA researcher with 44 years experience specializing in physical chemistry I readily acknowledge that physical chemistry can be a very challenging subject. But, personally, I have also found it to be immensely fascinating and rewarding. There are several good textbooks on physical chemistry but, in my opinion, none is better than this one. Levine has done a very good job of presenting the material contained in an understandable fashion without compromising scientific rigor.

An earlier reviewer stated that this book is full of inaccuracies, but I strongly disagree with this statement. One example of an alleged inaccuracy which this reviewer cited is Levine`s statement that, at the velocity of light, photons have mass. This is a true statement; photons do indeed have both mass and momentum and thus can cause pressure on objects they strike. I beg you not to be biased against this outstanding book by this flawed review.

The topic of physical chemistry -- in which chemistry, physics, and mathematics overlap and interact -- clearly does not appeal to everyone. Even many chemists shun the rigors of physical chemistry as much as possible. But for those studying this important subject, I highly recommend this book. And some of you may even come to love this fascinating subject as I do.

for those who don't like Levine.......2007-04-25

If you want the most student friendly book get Physical Chemistry , 4/e by Laidler, Meiser, Sanctuary, ISBN 061815292X.

Description on their website says "With its clear explanations and practical pedagogy, Physical Chemistry is less intimidating to students than other texts, without sacrificing the mathematical rigor and comprehensiveness necessary for a junior-level physical chemistry course. The text's long-standing reputation for accessible writing provides clear instruction and superior problem-solving support for students." I second that.

see my review here Physical Chemistry I mention the alternatives as well.

Terrible semester.......2007-03-31

Physical Chemistry is complicated, there is no way of getting around that. This book will go through the derivations, but never include units. That is a huge problem.

Terrible. Absolutely terrible........2006-09-24

I don't know why so many other people think this book is good. I feel just the opposite.

First, it is filled with factual inaccuracies. Let me quote just one howler, from page 604. "At speed c, the photon has a nonzero mass m." Yes, you heard right, Dr. Levine thinks photons have mass. He then goes on to give an incorrect statement and explanation of the De Broglie wavelength. (Among other things, he uses "mv" instead of momentum, which is of course true only in the case of Newtonian mechanics with massive particles. Sigh.) These gaffes are rarely typos, they are generally the sort of thing which someone with a fundamental understanding of the underlying physics cringes at.

Second, Levine is incapable of going a paragraph without interrupting himself. Given the choice of stating something simply, or filling a paragraph with fifteen references (placed in the text, not in footnotes) and a few asides, he always goes for the latter. References are a fine thing, but placing them inside the text and doing it constantly interrupts the reader's thinking.

Taking an example a few pages earlier in the text, it is not sufficient for Levine to start to explain the photoelectric effect, he has to add in a few lines about practical applications of photocells. All fine and well, but it distracts from the flow of the logic, and frankly the applications of photocells aren't germane to what is being taught here, which is that light is quantized. Levine can never resist the temptation to add a little aside -- there are even spots in the book where he interrupts his own interruptions.

Third, Levine is also incapable of writing without making what he discusses somehow seem meaningless and uninteresting. Take thermodynamics. In the hands of a bad author, thermodynamics can seem like a swirling vortex of formula manipulations, but if you read, say, Enrico Fermi's pamphlet from the 1930s, you instead feel as though you're seeing the power of a few ideas applied rigorously to an interesting domain -- you feel the relevance of the topic to the world and you feel the sparkle of the author's intellect. Levine takes this same topic and makes it feel like an endless parade of noise.

Indeed, Levine can take all sorts topics that are full of inherent interest and relevance and make them seem utterly abstract, boring and lifeless. In order to cover up for this, he throws in lots of asides (see above) and the occassional several paragraph digression about the life of some famous scientist. Sadly, you don't make a topic more "interesting for the kids" by throwing in random asides and distractions -- you do it by knowing how to teach. A good teacher can make anything interesting -- a bad one can't make up for it by doing a few juggling tricks.

Between Levine's self-interruptions, asides and dry presentation, somehow the length of the text always seems an order of magnitude longer than necessary to explain any given subject. I often mentally scream "get to the point already!" as I read.

There is also the question of order of presentation. Honestly, I think that starting a discussion of thermodynamics without first at least glossing to the kinetic theory of gases is a mistake. Abstraction has to be tempered with good mental models of what is going on and why it is going on or the student becomes lost. Even a couple of pages showing that the Ideal Gas Law is an emergent result of a simple classical mechanical model would ground the student better to the material. This sort of thing happens over and over in Levine, with discussion being often both too rigorous and unfounded in basic principles at the same time -- quite a trick to pull off.

Levine's text is, of course, in its fifth edition. Presumably, had the earlier revision been left alone, sales might have flagged as used copies from bored students uninterested in holding on to them filled the market. The publishers have therefore done the usual thing and produced trivial updates every few years to assure that used copies become worthless. Does this new fifth edition come with snazzy new diagrams and all the other stigmata of the modern textbook industry? No. The diagrams in the text -- a text you pay a kings ransom for -- were clearly done in MacDraw and MacPaint in the mid-1980s. I am not that upset about this -- I just find it another irritation. Truthfully, I don't need snazzy illustrations -- my favorite physics and chemistry texts are often decades old -- but if you're going to pretend that you're doing a new edition for some reason other than to keep your sales numbers up, at least have the decency to spend a small amount of money on production to keep up appearances. Milking the students is an embarrassment, especially at the inflated price this book commands.

Oh, and did I mention that the book is insanely heavy? That's not a small thing if you have to haul it around a campus constantly.

As I said, I don't know why other reviewers like this book so much. I'm a confirmed science geek who loves reading science texts for their own sake and I'm having a great deal of difficulty reminding myself that this text (which is being used for a class I'm taking) is not reason enough to find the entire subject of physical chemistry an unbearably boring waste of time -- the topic is in fact interesting, it is this book which is the problem.

To survive the course I'm taking with my mind intact, I've used a succession of small texts by people like Fermi and Pauli. The contrast between people who understand a topic well enough to explain it clearly and simply and the people like Levine that churn out heavy uninteresting textbooks is striking. If you're a professor considering the use of this book, please, please, please don't do it. Find something else. there has to be a decent book on this topic out there somewhere.

As a final comment, let me say this is not the worst text I've ever used. That would be H.J. Pain's "The Physics of Vibrations and Waves". To damn Dr. Levine with faint praise, this book doesn't even come close to being as bad as that other text.

Great Book.......2006-04-22

I took both semesters of P.Chem, failing the first because I took way too many upper level Chem Classes & working as well as a weak background in Calc 3. After studying Calc III by myself over the summer and retaking the class, I am able to absorb so much more and I'm ripping a new one in this class. It is truly an amazing book. Having a solid math background helps one to 'connect the dots' so-to-speak whenever Dr. Levine makes these 'shortcuts'. Tons of worked examples, difficult yet definitely possible homework problems and an acutual intelligent sense of humor are woven into the this book making an extremely complex and difficult subject..... engaging, lol. I spend close to 40hrs. per test and I'm thankful I'm putting myeself through this. Great book, just make sure you have a solid understanding of partial diff eqns. and complex algebra before you take it. Not meant for the weak of mind.

Polymers, Phosphors, and Voltaics for Radioisotope Microbatteries

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Polymers, Phosphors, and Voltaics for Radioisotope Microbatteries

Manufacturer: CRC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0849309158

Book Description

Representing the collective effort of over 30 leading scientists in Russia and the United States, this is the first book written solely on the subject of nuclear batteries. It presents a rich historical discussion and original research on the conversion of nuclear materials into electrical power, which can then be harvested to make long-lasting, more energy efficient batteries. With this technology, power-matched supplies would last decades - even centuries - using safe, direct, long-life, stable, integrated electric power from the highest energy density source available. Polymers, Phosphors, and Voltaics for Radioisotope Microbatteries presents the state-of-the-art in interdisciplinary research in radiochemistry, tritium storage, semiconductor fabrication and characterization, nuclear battery fabrication and testing, integration into MEMS and other electronic devices, and much more. A key feature of this book is its discussion of construction materials for miniaturized radioisotope power supplies, since progress in nuclear battery technology depends on characterization of functionally radiation-stable components. Though substantial progress has been made to solve problems of using integrated radioisotope batteries for micro- and nanoelectronics, each author has provided an authoritative assessment and has indicated where development is needed. Research in this area has the potential to revolutionize the microelectronics industry by enabling MEMS and nanotechnology. Significant technological progress depends today on coordinated interdisciplinary research. Polymers, Phosphors, and Voltaics for Radioisotope Microbatteries contains diverse discussions of the problems of using radioactive material for microelectronic power needs and guides readers to future research in the area of long-life, high energy-density batteries.

Electronic Structure: Basic Theory and Practical Methods

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A Gr8 Book on DFT Concepts
Excellent book
Not impressive
Outstanding

Electronic Structure: Basic Theory and Practical Methods
Richard M. Martin
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0521782856

Book Description

The study of the electronic structure of materials is at a momentous stage, with the emergence of new computational methods and theoretical approaches. This volume provides an introduction to the field and describes its conceptual framework, the capabilities of present methods, limitations, and challenges for the future. Many properties of materials can now be determined directly from the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics, bringing new insights into critical problems in physics, chemistry, and materials science.

Customer Reviews:

A Gr8 Book on DFT Concepts.......2007-07-05

I like this book and would recommend it to any beginner into density functional theory. It explains all the modern electronic structure techniques in a rather simple language. Its much more easier and quicker than going into hundreds of papers and not knowing where to start.

The biggest issue with this book is a rather poor organisational structure to the book. That's why I've given it a 4/5 rating. There are some concepts that have been easily thrown in at the end, into the appendices.. and having to turn pages too frequently can be annoying.

But the good work has been done & I'd ask Mr Martin to re-organise the content.

This book has the potential to be a classic.

Excellent book.......2006-03-21

As a graduate student attempting to learn density functional theory and its use in computer programmes, I have found this book to be an excellent addition to my library. Well structured and written.

Not impressive.......2005-06-30

Although the topics the book embrasses are current and essential for practising chemists, physisists and materials scientists the pedagogic care with which it explains some of the topics is poor.

The author makes the assumption that the reader is familiarized with the heavy mathematical formalism and notation which is commonplace in specialized physics articles but fails to remember that graduate students that don't have a physics background, and come from other schools of thought such as chemistry, biochemistry or materials science, might be target readers.

For instance the book's introduction to Hartree-Fock theory must be the most complicated I've ever seen with constant recourse to Dirac's delta function (without even revealing its presence, stating simply that it should be there). The link between DFT and statistical thermodynamics although interesting is not essential for the heart of the discussion. Some classic program applications like Siesta are presented but you get the feeling that it's just for show off.

All in all if you're a physicist with some years of experience in the field of planewave computation you might find the book interesting.

Otherwise if you're a beginner like me forget it! The book by Efthimios Kaxiras (Atomic and Electronic Structure of Solids) is more revealing and pedagogic and supplies every detail in the mathematical formalism. Some physicists with a more chemical sensitivity such as Harrison, chemists such as Roald Hoffmann, Jeremy Burdett or Michael Springborg or materials scientists like Adrian Sutton or David Pettifor are better suited for the novice.

Outstanding.......2004-07-07

This book was recommended to me to help me in my research, and has turned out to be one of the best recommendations I have ever received. This is a great book; by far the best I have come across on the topic of computing the properties of condensed phase materials by quantum mechanical simulations. Here are the reasons why.

1. The chapters are well laid out and one chapter flows neatly to the next.

2. The math is kept to a minimum; the author makes a point of communicating important principles and ideas in concise sentences without resorting to derivations. This is ideal for engineers like me; who by training do not know that much math as compared to physicists who specialize in the solid state.

3. Important ideas are clarified up front. Many texts will lead the reader through long and windy paths of proofs and logic before arriving at the conclusion; thereby losing their reader in the process. Not here; important points are stated clearly at the beginning and at the end of each section.

4. Compare, contrast, and context. There are many ideas, models, approximations, and theorems that have been developed in the past century related to electronic structure. Many of these are closely related to each other in their inspiration, derivation, practice, and/or applications. This book makes the connections between the different concepts. For a non-expert reading through the electronic structure literature, terms like APW, OPW, PAW, LAPW, LMTO, etc... can be quite confusing if not placed within an overriding context. This book provides that context.

5. Good use of appendices. Electronic structure is a lot like politics; most practicioners in either field did not receive formal educations in the subject, but instead got into it under the apprenticeship of other people. This is reflected by a lot of literature by those who succeeded in the field; most of it good in showing of the authors' achievements, but generally useless in preparing the next generation of practicioners. For electronic structure, this is manifested by the many books that require prior knowledge of quantum, thermo, crystallography, mat sci, etc.. In effect, these books were written by experts to be read by other experts. Not this book. Basic ideas are kept in the text; and specific proofs and derivations are kept in the appendices. The result is a text that is much easier to read than most others.

6. The book is concept driven; not application driven. Most texts in materials simulations are actually a compilation of chapters written independently by multiple authors. Each chapter might be given a general title; but the text will be bias towards the research of its authors. For example, a chapter on surface calculations might focus entirely on adsorption, or relaxation/reconstruction, or optical properties; but surely not touching all these subjects. This book does not do this; each chapter is driven by basic concepts, and one concept leads to the next.

Product Description

Studies on the electronic properties of conjugated polymers and low molecular weight organic solids have been of increasing interest in recent years. This book is organized into two parts dedicated to these two classes of materials. For each part a general introductory review provides background knowledge of the language and of the main points required for understanding the book's contents. The reviews that follow provide a more complete understanding of the underlying physics of the materials through discussion of the interconnected topics. Theoretical concepts, models and methods are overviewed; this is used to support the explanation of the physical and chemical properties of these materials. The presentation of selected aspects of experimental research greatly contributes to the basic understanding of organic electronic materials.

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Chemistry Selected Solutions Manual
Pearson
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0131402145
Release Date: 2003-05-09

Thin Films on Glass (Schott Series on Glass and Glass Ceramics)

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Thin Films on Glass (Schott Series on Glass and Glass Ceramics)

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 3540585974

Book Description

This corrected and expanded printing of Thin Films on Glass describes the development of active and passive thin films on glass at Schott, including recent developments and new technologies in glass ceramic reflectors, coatings on plastics and optical multilayers for ultra narrow band pass filters. Design strategies, the use of conventional and newly developed production technologies, and the application of characterization methods for the structure of thin films and their properties are reported. The book is written by Schott experts and illustrates how the best film materials and deposition and processing parameters may be selected. The topics covered include flip-flop layers, wave-guiding films, Rugate filters and gradient devices, optical transducers, coatings, and mirrors.

Electronic Processes in Organic Crystals and Polymers

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The 2nd Edition

Electronic Processes in Organic Crystals and Polymers
Martin Pope , and Charles E. Swenberg
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0195129636

Book Description

The first edition of Pope and Swenberg's Electronic Processes of Organic Crystals, published in 1982, became the classic reference in the field. It provided a tutorial on the experimental and related theoretical properties of aromatic hydrocarbon crystals and included emerging work on polymers and superconductivity. This new edition contains the complete text of the first edition, plus an extensive new section, comprising nearly half of the book, which covers recent developments and applications with polymers. The book provides a unified description of what is known in almost every aspect of the field, from basic phenomena to the latest practical applications, which include LED's, photocopiers, photoconductors, batteries, transistors, liquid crystals, photorefractive devices, and sensors.

Customer Reviews:

The 2nd Edition.......2000-07-18

This new edition contains a corrected first edition as Part I. Part II focuses on technologically relavant electroactive polymers chapter by chapter as well as relevant electronic processes. This book belongs on the desk of everyone working and publishing in the field of solid state organic electronics.

Permanent Magnet & Electromechanical Devices: Materials, Analysis, and Applications (Electromagnetism)

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excellent reference book for those designing magnetic motors

Permanent Magnet & Electromechanical Devices: Materials, Analysis, and Applications (Electromagnetism)
Edward P. Furlani
Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0122699513

Book Description

The book provides both the theoretical and the applied background needed to predict magnetic fields. The theoretical presentation is reinforced with over 60 solved examples of practical engineering applications such as the design of magnetic components like solenoids, which are electromagnetic coils that are moved by electric currents and activate other devices such as circuit breakers. Other design applications would be for permanent magnet structures such as bearings and couplings, which are hardware mechanisms used to fashion a temporary connection between two wires.

This book is written for use as a text or reference by researchers, engineers, professors, and students engaged in the research, development, study, and manufacture of permanent magnets and electromechanical devices. It can serve as a primary or supplemental text for upper level courses in electrical engineering on electromagnetic theory, electronic and magnetic materials, and electromagnetic engineering.

Customer Reviews:

excellent reference book for those designing magnetic motors.......2004-02-10

Last year I was seeking a reference book on permanent magnetic motors. I found this book to be an excellent choice. The subject material includes magnetic materials and properties, leading into the various classes of permanent magnet materials, a good review of Maxwell's equations, which is used to lead into several useful analytical models, before closing with a review of permanent magnet devices and electromechanical devices. If the book had included problem sets at the end of each chapter, it would have ended up as an excellent graduate level textbook on the subject. As it is, the book will serve experienced technical folks well, either as a refresher on material already known, or as a method of teaching new material in all its gory detail.

The Chemistry of Artificial Lighting Devices (Studies in Inorganic Chemistry)

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The Chemistry of Artificial Lighting Devices (Studies in Inorganic Chemistry)
R.C. Ropp
Manufacturer: Elsevier Science
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0444817093

Book Description

Both the early use of artificial lighting and current manufacturing methods concerning incandescent and fluorescent lamps are covered in this book. The protocols for manufacture of fluorescent lamp phosphors and those used in cathode ray tubes are also treated in some detail. This text surveys the amazing, vast array of artificial lighting devices known to date in terms of how they arose and are, or have been used by mankind.

Book Description

This is the first book to provide an in-depth presentation of photosensitive polyimides for electronic and photonic applications. The authors are leading specialists in this field from Japan, Europe and the U.S. From the Preface Aromatic polyimides were developed originally as thermostable flexible polymer films for space applications. Now polyimides have found widespread use in the manufacture of electronic devices and have been employed in increasingly diverse areas of electronics and information technology. In addition to their excellent thermal stability and high processability, a wide range of chemical and physical properties provided by molecular engineering makes polyimides highly versatile in the electronics and information industries. Lithography of polyimides is an inevitable process in using polyimides for microelectronic fields, and hence increasing research has been devoted to developing photosensitive polyimides, which make it unnecessary to use photoresists for patterning polyimides and diminishing markedly the number of steps in fabrication of various electronic devices. In addition, the development of technology of photosensitive polyimides is expected to play a great role in manufacturing photonic devices in the near future, when the design and control of hyper fine structures . . . including higher thermal stability and better processability would be essential.

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