Research in Theoretical Chemistry at Aberdeen:

We organised a Workshop on Molecular Potential Energy Surfaces in Many Dimensions, 30th June - 3rd July 2008 in Aberdeen.

Group Members

Publications list

I-NoLLS least-squares fitting program.

Workshop on Wide-Amplitude Rovibrational Bound States in Polyatomic Molecules (2001)

Workshop on Rovibrational Bound States in Polyatomic Molecules (1999)


Molecular potential energy surfaces (PESs) are of central importance in molecular physics and many areas of physical chemistry. There is a great need for reliable molecular inter- and intramolecular potential energy surfaces (PESs) for the study of chemical reaction and photodissociation dynamics, energy exchange processes, surface scattering and the interpretation of spectroscopic effects. Theoretical computational methods for studying such problems have advanced enormously in recent years and often the major inaccuracies in calculations arise from uncertainties in the molecular potentials involved.

One powerful approach to determining such potentials is to determine the parameters of some assumed functional form by least-squares fitting. That is molecular (spectroscopic) properties predicted by a trial model potential function are compared with actual experimental observations and the parameters of the model optimised so that a good observed minus calculated fit is obtained.

This theme of determining accurate molecular PESs from spectroscopic data (including infrared, microwave, U.V. and visible) is central to a number of other interrelated components of our research:

Molecular systems of current interest include: acetylene, silylidene and disilyne and their isotopomers; weakly bound Van der Waals type molecular complexes and ion-molecule complexes.

Our work also includes quantum scattering and bound-state calculations on antimatter interacting with normal matter. There is considerable academic and practical interest in the interaction of antimatter with atoms and molecules. For example, antimatter is used in medical PET scanning ("Positron Emission Tomography") and in positron-annihilation-lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) for materials characterisation, whilst one possible future use for antiprotons is in "antiproton-beam cancer therapy".

The work on fitting physical models has resulted in a major new computer code, the I-NoLLS least-squares fitting program.


A Workshop on Rovibrational Bound States in Polyatomic Molecules was held in Aberdeen in April 1999.


Publications list


This page last modified July 30th, 2020

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