Chemical structure

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Chemical structure refers to molecular geometry, electronic structure and crystal structure. Molecular geometry refers to the spatial arrangement of atoms in a molecule and the chemical bonds that hold the atoms together. Molecular geometry can range from the very simple, such as diatomic oxygen or nitrogen molecules, to the very complex, such as protein or DNA molecules. Molecular geometry can be roughly represented using a structural formula. Electronic structure describes the occupation of a compound's molecular orbitals.

The following are common methods for determining chemical structure:

• X-ray diffraction
• Proton NMR
• Carbon NMR
• Mass spectrometry
• Infrared Spectroscopy

The following are common methods for determining electronic structure:

• Electron-spin resonance
• Cyclic voltammetry
• Electron Absorption Spectroscopy
• X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

[edit] See also

• Chemical conformation
• Pauli exclusion principle
• Lipinski's Rule of Five, describing molecular properties of drugs
• QSAR, quantitative structure-affinity relationship
• Chemical property
• Molecular property
• Physical property
• Structure determination