Treffer: PySyComp: A Symbolic Python Library for the Undergraduate Quantum Chemistry Course

Title:
PySyComp: A Symbolic Python Library for the Undergraduate Quantum Chemistry Course
Language:
English
Authors:
Elizabeth Stippell, Alexey V. Akimov (ORCID 0000-0002-7815-3731), Oleg V. Prezhdo (ORCID 0000-0002-5140-7500)
Source:
Journal of Chemical Education. 2023 100(10):4077-4084.
Availability:
Division of Chemical Education, Inc. and ACS Publications Division of the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-227-5558; Tel: 202-872-4600; e-mail: eic@jce.acs.org; Web site: http://pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Peer Reviewed:
Y
Page Count:
8
Publication Date:
2023
Document Type:
Fachzeitschrift Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research
Education Level:
Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
DOI:
10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c00974
ISSN:
0021-9584
1938-1328
Entry Date:
2024
Accession Number:
EJ1443487
Database:
ERIC

Weitere Informationen

We report an educational tool for the upper level undergraduate quantum chemistry or quantum physics course that uses a symbolic approach via the PySyComp Python library. The tool covers both time-independent and time-dependent quantum chemistry, with the latter rarely considered in the foundations course due to topic complexity. We use quantized Hamiltonian dynamics (QHD) that provides a simple extension of classical dynamics and captures key quantum effects. The PySyComp library can compute various concepts regarding the fundamental postulates of quantum mechanics, including normalized wave functions, expectation values, and commutators, which are at the core of solving the Heisenberg equations of motion. It provides a tool for students to experiment with simple models and explore the key quantum concepts, such as zero-point energy, tunneling, and decoherence.

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