Symmetry Resources at Otterbein University
The resources contained within this web site are designed to help students learn concepts of molecular symmetry and to help faculty teach concepts of molecular symmetry.
The resources contained within this web site are designed to help students learn concepts of molecular symmetry and to help faculty teach concepts of molecular symmetry.
This spreadsheet allows students to build complexes of a variety of geometries and to then use the angular overlap model to explore d-orbital energies when interacting with ligands whose esigma and epi energies can be varied.
http://academics.wellesley.edu/Chemistry/Flick/Excel/angoverlap.xls
I developed this Jmol page to help my students see the relationship(s) between the ligands and metal d-orbitals in a number of different geometries. Since the images are all rotatable, students who have difficulty looking at flat images and drawing appropriate conclusions have that barrier reduced or eliminated. I have now used the application twice - this past fall in the second semester of introductory chemistry and a few weeks ago when I began ligand field theory in my inorganic course. In both classes I received favorable comments. A number of students in the inorganic course, who h
Over the years I have developed a number of interactive tools that I use in my classes. This is a tool that seems appropriate for VIPEr. Comments are always appreciated, and I am always interested in developing new tools if there is something you might find useful.
This tool allows you to look at how molecular orbitals change as the difference in electronegativities of the parent atomic orbitals increases.
The Interactive Inorganic Challenge Forum is a resource for inorganic chemistry teachers who want to incorporate team learning questions (“Challenges”) into an upper level undergraduate inorganic course. Through this site, teachers can exchange their ideas with others who have used inorganic chemistry Challenges. As a result, students benefit from field-tested group questions.
This worksheet gives students practice with deriving and analyzing the rate laws for two step mechanisms. It's a good review of steady-state kinetics, the assumptions one makes in deriving rate laws, and rate determining steps (and how these last affect the rate law). It finishes by connecting these ligand substitution kinetics to Michaelis-Menton kinetics to show that "it's all the same math, we just change the form".
House (Inorganic chemistry): The book is divided into 5 parts: first, an introductory section on atomic structure, symmetry, and bonding; second, ionic bonding and solids; third, acids, bases and nonaqueous solvents; fourth, descriptive chemistry; and fifth, coordination chemistry. The first three sections are short, 2-4 chapters each, while the descriptive section (five chapters) and coordination chemistry section (seven chapters covering ligand field theory, spectroscopy, synthesis and reaction chemistry, organometallics, and bioinorganic chemistry.) are longer. Each chapter includes
This paper is a meaty communication that covers novel bonding of 4 e- π-donors to a 14-electron species. Requires students to apply their knowledge of electron counting and organometallic bonding to ligands that are acting in novel ways. This also includes exercises dealing with chemical information and general questions that require students to put the science in context.
This consists of two parts (and a solution, which is linked below under "Related Resources", but for which you will need a faculty privileges): a primer for students (best if handed out prior to class so that students can read it beforehand, or delivered in pre-lecture format) and a worksheet. The worksheet is designed to be done in small groups with assistance from an instructor. In very large classes, in which the instructor cannot circle amongst the groups, the instructor can work through each example after the groups have a few minutes to work the problem on their own.