Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 29, 2026

Obtaining 3D Chemical Maps by Energy Filtered Transmission Electron Microscopy Tomography
Published on: June 9, 2018
Chemical Notions from the Electron Density
Jaime Fernández Rico1, Rafael López1, Ignacio Ema1
1Departamento de Química Física Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias C-XIV, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain.
Abstract:
The study of density and the role played by its atomic representation is proposed as a way for the rationalization of chemical behavior. As this behavior has been long rationalized in terms of the basic concepts of empirical structural chemistry, a direct link between both approaches is searched for by using the exact representation of the density provided by the deformed atoms in molecules method (Rico, J. F.; López, R.; Ema, I.; Ramírez, G.; Ludeña, E. J. Comput. Chem. 2004, 25, 1355-1363). Noting that the spherical terms of the pseudoatoms cannot be mainly responsible for the chemical behavior, we study the small nonspherical deformations and find that they reflect and support all basic concepts of empirical structural chemistry. Lone pairs; single, double, and triple bonds; different classes of atoms; functional groups; and so forth are paralleled by the density deformations in a neat manner. These facts are illustrated with several examples.
Related Concept Videos
Electron Behavior
Electrons Orbit the Nucleus
Electrons are found in specific locations outside of the nucleus. The shell in which an electron resides indicates the general energy level of the electron: those closer to the nucleus have less energy,...
Electron Behavior
Electrons are negatively charged subatomic particles that are attracted to an orbit around the positively-charged nucleus of an atom. They reside in locations that are associated with energy levels called shells and are further organized into sub-shells and orbitals within each shell.
Electrons Orbit the Nucleus
Electrons are found in specific locations outside of the nucleus. The shell in which an electron resides indicates the general energy level of the electron: those closer to the...
The Quantum-Mechanical Model of an Atom
π Electron Effects on Chemical Shift: Overview
Electron Configurations
The relative energies of the subshells determine the order in which atomic orbitals are filled (1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p,...
The Uncertainty Principle

