- Geometric Structure: The three dimensional arrangement of atoms in a molecule results in a unique shape which can affect the properties, reactivity, and stability of a molecule, as well as its ability to interact with or bind to another molecule.
- Electronic Structure: The energies and extent of filling of atomic orbitals and molecular orbitals in an atom or molecule affects the properties, reactivity and stability of an atom/molecule. Electronic structure includes the nature of bonds between atoms and the interaction between orbitals on neighboring or remote atoms.
- Forces between Molecules: Interactions between groups in a molecule or between molecules can occur over a distance through dispersion forces, dipole-dipole interactions, hydrogen bonding, and crystal packing forces.
- Thermodynamics: The stability of an atom/molecule influences its reactivity and determines whether an atom/molecule will react with another atom/molecule.
- Kinetics: The rate at which one atom/molecule reacts with another atom/molecule is influenced greatly by the concentrations of the individual species undergoing the reaction, the rate of collisions between molecules, and by the energy needed for atoms/molecules to react individually or with one another.
- Reactions: There are four basic ways that molecules react: (1) Electron-transfer (redox reactions); (2) Lone electron sharing (radical reactions); (3) Electron pair sharing (i.e., acid-base reactions, electrophilic/ nucleophilic reactions); and (4) Concerted Reactions (i.e., pericyclic reactions).
The "Big Ideas" of Chemistry were adapted from the following references:
- Peter Atkins, Chemistry: The Great Ideas, personal communication to P. Hampton, 2003.
- Peter Atkins and Loretta Jones, Chemical Principles. W.H.Freeman & Co, New York (2002).
- Peter Atkins, The Periodic Kingdom. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London (1995).
- Peter Atkins, Galileo's Finger: The 10 Great Ideas of Science. Oxford University Press (2003)