Atkins' Physical Chemistry is perhaps the most internationally acclaimed undergraduate textbook in its field. The author team strives to continuously update the book’s content, following the progress of science, by incorporating many modern applications of physical chemistry.

In this new translation into Greek (from the twelfth English edition), the structure of the material has been maintained so that instructors have greater flexibility in course planning and students are facilitated in their study. The exercises have been redistributed, with some moved into the flow of the text, while much of the mathematical background has been moved to the electronic supplement of the printed edition, which is freely available at www.cup.gr. There you will also find sections with material that highlights the interdisciplinary nature of physical chemistry through its impact on other scientific fields, in-depth sections on special topics, as well as plenty of supplementary material, such as data tables, illustrated diagrams, and more.

The scope of the material covered is very broad. Initially, the concepts of thermodynamics and their applications are presented, phase transitions and phase diagrams are studied, as well as chemical equilibrium and electrochemistry. Then, the principles of quantum mechanics are developed, which are applied to the study of atomic and molecular structure. This knowledge, combined with the study of molecular symmetry, is used to interpret atomic and molecular spectra. The presentation continues with statistical thermodynamics, the study of molecular interactions, and the properties of solids. Finally, chemical kinetics, reaction dynamics, catalyst action, and processes on solid surfaces are examined.

The presentation of the concepts continues to be carried out in a simple way, without neglecting scientific rigor. Numerous brief applications, solved examples, as well as a rich collection of unsolved exercises and problems of graded difficulty contribute to this approach. Many of the unsolved problems draw data from real experimental results, thus giving the reader the opportunity to perceive the direct relationship that theory always has with experiment in the natural sciences.