Groups of 3-4 students follow this handout to create models of the 7 crystal systems and the 14 Bravais lattices using DOTS gumdrops, bamboo skewers and wood toothpicks.
A series of JAVA applets of Tanbe-Sugano diagrams were developed by Prof. Robert Lancashire at the University of the West Indies. These diagrams allow students to determine deltao/B values based on ratios of peak energies without the pain of rulers and drawing lines. There are also features that allow a person to input values and automatically calculate certain parameters. You can also quickly find values of delta_o and B for certain complexes via a drop-down menu on some of the pages (e.g. Cr3+ complexes).
It is the classic game of telephone (or whatever local varient name you might use). Put a bunch of people in a line. Start by whispering something to the first person and then have them whisper it to the next. This process continues until the last person states out loud what they heard. Usually the starting and ending statements are quite different. When students are reading a paper, it is fairly likely that they feel anything the paper they are reading says about a reference is correct.
This in-class group activity provides several examples of varying difficulty for students to assign MLXZ classifications and electron counts to organometallic complexes. Though some of the problems are straightforward, some are really ambiguous, and the intent is for student groups to grapple with the issues raised by each one and present their findings to the class to spark further discussion.
This website was put together by David W. Mogk, Montana State University–professor of geology and contra/square dance caller. Using square dancing, he shows symmetry elements present in space groups. There are videos on the website, but everything seems simple enough to do in class.
The slides provide review questions for a senior-level treatment of the spectroscopy and reactivity of metal carbonyl complexes. These are intended to be dispersed through one to three class periods.
The first slide is a review of electron counting and the 18-electron rule.
The second slide quizzes the students on the relationship between the electron-density of the metal center and the strength of the C-O bonds in the carbonyl ligands. It is intended to be given after a discussion of how IR can be used to assess the strength of M-C and C-O bonds in the compounds.
This is a simple activity designed to help students visualize the interaction of atomic orbitals to form molecular orbitals. Students construct atomic orbitals out of Play-Doh and determine whether overlap of a given pairs of atomic orbitals along the specified axis can result in a σ, π, or δ interaction or no net interaction. I do this activity following a reading assignment and lecture on the formation of molecular orbitals from atomic orbitals that cover the various types of interactions. Students then work in groups of 3-4 to complete the instructions described on the attached worksh
Students are asked to find a coordination complex in the recent literature and analyze its structure. This homework or in-class activity is a great way for the instructor to crowd source the discovery of interesting new complexes to use as material in future exams.
This is a collection of LOs that I used to teach a junior-senior seminar course on organometallics during Fall 2014 at Harvey Mudd College.