Models that are used to predict and explain phenomena related to molecular vibration and rotation are ubiquitous in physical chemistry, and are of importance in many related fields. Yet, little work has been done to characterize student use and application of these models. We describe the results of a multi-year, multi-institutional qualitative study to investigate how students work with and apply models of molecular vibration and rotation. Our findings indicate that a sizable fraction of students (1) struggle to interpret the meaning of wavefunctions, (2) do not appropriately build potential and kinetic energy terms into models, and (3) conflate portions of various model systems. The data suggests that the ordering of content in the quantum chemistry course impacts students’ ideas about the rotational and vibrational behavior of molecules. The results are analyzed through the lenses of a two theoretical frameworks: one for scientific modeling, and one for heuristics in the context of chemistry. Implications for research and teaching practice are provided.

中文翻译：

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物理化学学生的导航和使用模型预测和解释分子振动和旋转

用于预测和解释与分子振动和旋转有关的现象的模型在物理化学中无处不在，并且在许多相关领域中都很重要。但是，很少有工作可以描述学生对这些模型的使用和应用。我们描述了一项多年的，多机构的定性研究的结果，以调查学生如何使用和应用分子振动和旋转模型。我们的发现表明，相当多的学生（1）难以解释波函数的含义；（2）未能在模型中适当建立势能和动能项；（3）合并了各种模型系统的各个部分。数据表明，量子化学课程中内容的顺序会影响学生对分子旋转和振动行为的看法。通过两个理论框架对结果进行分析：一个用于科学建模，一个用于化学背景下的启发式。提供了对研究和教学实践的启示。