Hello! Maia Popova (https://chem.uncg.edu/person/popova/) and I (https://chem.wisc.edu/staff/pazicni-sam/) are putting together an NSF IUSE proposal to investigate student learning of molecular symmetry and how classroom practices influence this learning. We would greatly appreciate if VIPEr members would consider one or both of the following requests:

How much detail do you go into when discussing symmetry planes in C_4v molecules? There appears to be a semi-consensus that the vertical (σ_v) planes should contain as many atoms as possible, with the second set of planes (σ_d) bisecting the first.

As I begin my 19th year of teaching I realize that I do not have a good grasp of group theory or how to formally use it to determine the number of IR active vibrations in a species. I am trying to come up with a good exercise for my students that could introduce them to point groups and character tables.

I teach a one-semester upper-division course where, as we all know, tough decisions need to be made.  I have always taught symmetry, but it has become apparent that our students enter their senior year weak in kinetics, so I am considering swapping out symmetry/group theory for a more advanced treatment of kinetics and mechanisms.  This pains me, because these two topics are are two of my favories.  Then again, so is everything else...

Thoughts?

Karen

Hello all,

I am teaching a thrid year inorganic course and want to teach some IR basic using symmetry and character tables.

I would like to go over generating  Reducible representations and then use the reduction formula based on the character table to get to the irreducible representation.

I am using Housecroft and Sharpe's Inorganic Chemistry Text book, 3rd edition and they do cover this topic a little bit, biut I was wondering if anyone knows of other more comprehensive resources with further examples and explanations.

Thanks.