Relativistic Effects in Heavy-Element Chemistry and Physics
Wiley Series in Theoretical Chemistry
November 2002
328 Seiten, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Heavy atoms and their compounds are important in many areas ofmodern technology. Their versatility in the reactions they undergois the reason that they can be found in most homogeneous andheterogeneous catalysts. Their magnetism is the decisive propertythat qualifies them as materials for modern storage devices.
The phenomena observed in compounds of heavy atoms such asphosphorescence, magnetism or the tendency for high valency inchemical reactions can to a large extent be traced back torelativistic effects in their electronic structure. Thus, in manyaspects relativistic effects dominate the physics and chemistry ofheavy atoms and their compounds.
Chemists are usually aware of these phenomena, however, the theorybehind them is not part of the standard chemistry curriculum andthus not widely known among experimentalists. Whilst therelativistic quantum theory of electronic structure is wellestablished in physics, applications of the theory to chemicalsystems and materials have been feasible only in the last decadeand their practical applications in connection with chemicalexperiment is somewhat out of sight of modern theoretical physics.
Relativistic Effects in Heavy Element Chemistry and Physicsintends to bridge the gap between chemistry and physics on the onehand and between theory and experiment on the other.
Topics covered include:
A broad range from quantum electrodynamics to the phenomenology ofthe compounds of heavy and superheavy elements
A state-of-the-art survey of the most important theoreticaldevelopments and applications in the field of relativistic effectsin heavy-element chemistry and physics in the last decade
Special emphasis on the work of researchers in Europe and Germanyin the framework of research programmes of the European ScienceFoundation and the German Science Foundation
Foreword.
Preface.
1. Basic Theory and Quantum Electrodynamics in StrongFields.
Introduction.
Electrons in Superintense Laser Fields.
Electron-Positron Pair Creation in Relativistic Heavy-IonCollisions.
Relativistic and QED Effects in Highly Charged Ions.
2. Four-Component Ab Initio Methods for Atoms, Moleculesand Solids.
Introduction.
General Many-Electron Formalism.
Atomic-Structure Calculations.
Molecular Structure Calculations.
Electronic Structure of Solids.
Concluding Remarks and Perspective.
3. Relativistic Quantum Chemistry with Pseudopotentials andTransformed Hamiltonians.
Introduction.
Transformed Hamiltonians: Theory.
Transformed Hamiltonians: Applications.
Valence-Only Effective Hamiltonians.
Effective Core Potentials: Applications.
4. Relativistic Density Functional Theory.
Introduction.
Foundations.
Implicit Density Functionals.
Explicit Density Functionals.
Norm-Conserving Pseudopotentials.
A pplications of RDFT using the Relativistic DiscreteVariational Method.
5. Magnetic Phenomena in Solids.
Introduction.
Formalism.
Applications.
6. Experimental and Theoretical Study of the Chemistry of theHeaviest Elements.
Introduction.
Theory.
Experiment.
Element 105.
Element 106.
Summary.
7. Experimental Probes for Relativistic Effects in the Chemistryof Heavy d and f Elements.
Introduction.
Gas-Phase Ion Chemistry of Heavy Elements.
Structural Chemistry of Gold Compounds in the CondensedPhase.
Conclusions.
Appendix A.
References.
Index.
"...All chapters, regardless of their depth, give reliableaccount...a tantalizing taste of many important subjects..."(Theoretical Chemistry Accounts, Vol 100(5), 2003)
