In chemistry, molecules with a "flat" geometry are often stable enough to support a wide range of reactions. But in the quantum world, that's not technically true. Reading time 3 minutes Any concept ...

Traditional chemistry textbooks present a tidy picture: Atoms in molecules occupy fixed positions, connected by rigid rods. A molecule such as formic acid (methanoic acid, HCOOH) is imagined as ...

I’m a big-time chemical and a clue to how chemists are celebrating Earth Week this year. What molecule am I? Formic acid is the simplest carboxylic acid. Its discovery in the distillation products of ...

Formic acid dimers represent a paradigmatic model for studying the intricacies of hydrogen bond dynamics. When two formic acid molecules associate through dual hydrogen bonds, they form a stable, ...

: Quantum mechanical zero-point vibration—the “trembling” of the atoms—makes formic acid a chiral molecule whose two forms, like the right and left hand, cannot be superimposed. FRANKFURT. Traditional ...