Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-mlc7c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-14T23:03:55.545Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Quantum Theory of Atoms in Molecules and the Interactive Conception of Chemical Bonding

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Stephen Esser
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Quantum physics is the foundation for chemistry, but the concept of chemical bonding is not easily reconciled with quantum mechanical models of molecular systems. The quantum theory of atoms in molecules, developed by Richard F. W. Bader and colleagues, seeks to define bonding using a topological analysis of the electron density distribution. The “bond paths” identified by the analysis are posited as indicators of a special pair-wise physical relationship between atoms. While elements of the theory remain subject to debate, I argue that the quantum theory of atoms in molecules embodies a distinctive interactive conception of bonding that is an attractive alternative to others previously discussed.

Type
Physical Sciences
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 86 , Issue 5 , December 2019 , pp. 1307 - 1317
Copyright
Copyright © The Philosophy of Science Association

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

*

To contact the author, please write to: University of Pennsylvania, 433 Cohen Hall, 249 S. 36th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104; e-mail: sesser@sas.upenn.edu.

References

Bader, Richard F. W. 1990. Atoms in Molecules: A Quantum Theory. Oxford: Clarendon.Google Scholar
Bader, Richard F. W.. 1998. “A Bond Path: A Universal Indicator of Bonded Interactions.” Journal of Physical Chemistry A 102:7314–23.Google Scholar
Bader, Richard F. W.. 2009. “Bond Paths Are Not Chemical Bonds.” Journal of Physical Chemistry A 113:10391–96.Google Scholar
Bader, Richard F. W.. 2011. “On the Non-existence of Parallel Universes in Chemistry.” Foundations of Chemistry 13:11–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berlin, Theodore. 1951. “Binding Regions in Diatomic Molecules.” Journal of Chemical Physics 19:208–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berson, Jerome A. 2008. “Molecules with Very Weak Bonds: The Edge of Covalency.” Philosophy of Science 75 (Proceedings): 947–57.10.1086/594537CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cerpa, Erick, Krapp, Andreas, Vela, Alberto, and Merino, Gabriel. 2008. “The Implications of Symmetry of the External Potential on Bond Paths.” Chemistry: A European Journal 14:10232–34.Google ScholarPubMed
Foroutan-Nejad, Cina, Shahbazian, Shant, and Marek, Radek. 2014. “Toward a Consistent Interpretation of the QTAIM: Tortuous Link between Chemical Bonds, Interactions, and Bond/Line Paths.” Chemistry: A European Journal 20:10140–52.Google Scholar
Gillespie, Ronald J., and Popelier, Paul L. A.. 2001. Chemical Bonding and Molecular Geometry. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Goodwin, William. 2012. “Mechanisms and Chemical Reaction.” In Philosophy of Chemistry, ed. Woody, Andrea I., Hendry, Robin Findlay, and Needham, Paul, 309–27. Amsterdam: Elsevier.Google Scholar
Hendry, Robin Findlay. 2008. “Two Conceptions of the Chemical Bond.” Philosophy of Science 75 (Proceedings): 909–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewis, Gilbert N. 1916. “The Atom and the Molecule.” Journal of the American Chemical Society 38:762–85.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Loudon, G. Marc. 1995. Organic Chemistry. 3rd ed. San Francisco: Benjamin-Cumming.Google Scholar
Needham, Paul. 2014. “The Source of Chemical Bonding.” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 45:1–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pauling, Linus. 1960. The Nature of the Chemical Bond. 3rd ed. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.Google Scholar
Poater, Jordi, Solà, Miquel, and Bickelhaupt, F. Matthias. 2006. “A Model of the Chemical Bond Must Be Rooted in Quantum Mechanics, Provide Insight, and Possess Predictive Power.” Chemistry: A European Journal 12:2902–5.Google Scholar
Popelier, Paul. 2000. Atoms in Molecules: An Introduction. Harlow: Prentice-Hall.Google Scholar
Popelier, Paul. 2016. “On Quantum Chemical Topology.” In The Chemical Bond II, ed. Mingos, D. M. P., 23–52. Cham: Springer.Google Scholar
Weisberg, Michael. 2008. “Challenges to the Structural Conception of Chemical Bonding.” Philosophy of Science 75 (Proceedings): 932–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weisberg, Michael, Needham, Paul, and Hendry, Robin. 2016. “Philosophy of Chemistry.” In The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, ed. Zalta, Edward N.. Stanford, CA: Stanford University. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2016/entries/chemistry/.Google Scholar
Wimsatt, William C. 2007. Re-engineering Philosophy for Limited Beings. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar