Quantum Mechanics

Quantum mechanics was also a difficult class because it is also a combination of chemistry, physics, and calculus. It was also with Dr. Topham, so it was enjoyable, but still difficult. This class was basically learning how atoms move and interact. It was very math heavy and it was a struggle once it was moved to online learning because of COVID-19. Still, Dr. Topham was very helpful and would set up zoom meetings for help. Calculus and physics are not part of my strengths, but I ended up getting an A-. I enhanced this class because I wanted to dig deeper into the material so I could understand it better.

In this enhancement I looked more in depth at a quantum mechanical model called quantum tunneling. While looking deeper this model seemed similar to research that I did in PRISM. My research used quantum mechanics, but I used a computer software that did the calculations for me. The model looked at the probability of an electron going through a barrier and my research looked at the current through single molecules. The current moving through a molecule are electrons moving and to compare it would be like the molecule between the electrodes is acting as a barrier like in the model. There are similarities between these two, but there are more quantum mechanical models that need to be investigated to understand exactly how the current through molecules is calculated.