Friends, colleagues, and collaborators of Professor Norman H. March created this festschrift in honor of his 90th birthday. March is an emeritus professor at Oxford and the first Coulson Professor of Theoretical Chemistry. This collection of 29 chapters is based on a lifetime of investigations that characterize his career.
The central theme of the book is March’s contributions to many-body theory and applications. The chapters are divided into three parts: “Condensed Matter Theory,” “Theoretical Chemistry,” and “Theoretical Physics.” This categorization is not crisp. There is substantial overlap conceptually. The first part on condensed matter theory contains 15 of the 29 chapters. The remaining 14 chapters are divided evenly between the remaining two parts.
March’s early contributions to theoretical chemistry and physics were in the study of the Thomas-Fermi model of electron distributions that ultimately led to the density functional methods of molecular and solid-state quantum chemistry calculations. Conventional self-consistent field calculations use orbitals and full electron-electron interactions to generate molecular orbitals. Although they are based on first principles, they are expensive to perform and limited in the size of problems that can be reasonably attempted. Density functional methods begin with a model electron density based on non-interacting free electrons from which molecular or solid-state properties can be determined. They are fast and can be applied to a wider range of problems. In addition, March established a respected research program in condensed matter chemistry and physics by adapting statistical methods that he applied to the Thomas-Fermi electron gas.
Several chapters caught my eye. (As a disclaimer, this selection is based solely on my own interests.) Alonso et al.’s chapter on computer simulations of the structure of nanoporous carbons and higher density phases of carbon is a comprehensive study of the change in porosity of carbide-based carbon lattices based on the change of carbon bonding hybridization from sp2 to sp3. The calculations employ molecular dynamics simulations using semi-empirical force fields. Understanding the pore structure of carbon is important because of applications of porous carbon in environmental engineering for capturing pollutants and for storing hydrogen and other gases. As the chemical bonding of carbon changes, the chemical nature of the pore walls, surface area, and pore volume and connectivity changes.
Siringo’s chapter on molecular ordering in covalent solids describes a simple 3D lattice model. There are similarities and differences between the simple lattice model described and the Ising model. Many linear molecules can be described using this molecule, such as iodine, the hydrogen halides, and other linear molecules. The model reveals a phase transition between different orientational states. There is no known exact solution for the 3D Ising model. In Zhang’s chapter on topological effects and critical phenomena in this model, both local and nonlocal factors are extracted from statistical mechanical models. Local factors are insufficient in generating approximate solutions; nonlocal factors must be extracted.
Gallo et al.’s chapter on the structural properties of ionic aqueous solutions reviews recent original research on the structure of water surrounding alkali halides (NaCl, KCl, and KI) using computer simulation. The positive and negative ions will impose local structure as the polar- and hydrogen-bonded water molecules orient themselves around the charged centers. Water will form two layers--high and low density--in the presence of the ions. The structure of the layers is also similar to water under pressure. Phase transitions are possible.
Forte et al.’s contribution on emergent solid-state properties of molecules and clusters examines how many-body properties such as superconductivity, metalicity, and phase transitions can be revealed by quantum chemical computations on molecules and clusters.
The volume is a celebration of the scientific achievements of March who, even in his 90s, continues active research and collaborations with the authors in this volume. The primary readership of this book will likely be computational chemists and physicists interested in many-body theory applications, density functional theory, and condensed matter statistical mechanics.
