Small-Molecule Spectroscopy and Dynamics
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this graduate-level course on the spectroscopy of small molecules in the gas phase. Topics include quantum mechanical effective Hamiltonian models for rotational, vibrational, and electronic structure, transition selection rules and relative intensities, and diagnostic patterns for assigning non-textbook spectra. The course covers breakdown of the Born-Oppenheimer approximation and the spectroscopic perturbations that result, the stationary phase approximation, nondegenerate and quasidegenerate perturbation theory including the van Vleck transformation, and qualitative molecular orbital theory through Walsh diagrams. Students also learn the standard notation used in atomic and molecular spectroscopy. Materials follow the MIT OpenCourseWare format of lecture notes and problem sets, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA, with no certificate offered. The course suits students who already have a background in quantum mechanics and physical chemistry and want to work through the mathematical machinery behind real spectral assignments.