CHEM 4079
Instrumental Methods: Physical Chemistry
A course providing direct hands-on experience with the principles of physical chemistry (thermodynamics, quantum, kinetics) and associated experimental methods and instrumentation, including optical, infrared, and nuclear and electron spin resonance, electrochemistry, calorimetry, laser kinetics, and basic electronics. Prerequisite: Chem 401 or concurrent enrollment in Chem 402.
Instructors
Reviews
prof spees is one of the most caring, funny, and approachable professors ever, n probably one of the best profs in the chemistry department. the class itself is rough and there is an endless amount of work. 3 reports w revisions, weekly notebooks..time SINKS but you learn a lot.., 5 hour labs. but i grew a lot as a scientist, so it's worth it.
5/9/2026
one of my favorite professors at WashU. takes so much care of his students and their learning. would take every class with him if i could
5/4/2025
TAKE THIS CLASS! Holten is kind, patient, and really cares about making sure you're engaged with the material. He made us the cutest slideshow for the end of the semester. I took this class for an easy WI but ended up learning a ton. Go to the first help session to understand what they're looking for in notebooks/reports and you'll get an A.
5/8/2020
Dr. Holten is an extremely good professor who puts a lot of effort into making his course great. I am very glad that I took this course, and it helped me understand physical chemistry instrumentation and theory much better. I wish Dr. Holten would teach more courses in the Chem department, because I would take them. The TAs are incredible, too.
6/9/2017
He tries to be really nice and helpful, but he is very creepy. It seems like he is always nervous, especially around girls. As for the course, it is pretty good with lots of help.
3/29/2012
Interesting topics and you have plenty of help around you at all times. I actually wish that we could have more independence in the lab. It would be fun to play with some of the experiments. The grading of the lab write-ups is a bit odd, and sometimes arbitrary. Ask lots of questions and talk with him, and you will get a good grade.
5/29/2010
Dr. Holten's P chem Lab class is amazing! Definitely one of the best classes I've taken at WU; the spectroscopy labs in particular are awesome. Grading is NOT arbitrary, and you DON'T have to stay for the whole lab if you want a good grade. He is a fantastic and fair teacher who truly cares that you understand the material!
11/13/2009
P-chem lab was great, one of the best courses offered at WashU. Dr. Holten is nice, funny, and a skilled teacher who cares that his students learn the material. I don't know why people are complaining about arbitrary grading - I never saw him be anything other than fair. If you're a chem or biochem major, Chem 445 is highly recommended.
6/1/2008
He's awesome and its my favorite class but there's no question that grading is completely arbitrary
2/19/2008
This class was seriously promoted in Quantum. There are some cool experiments, but the course should be offered at the same time as Quantum. The grading is definitely arbitrary - or just based on favorites. Even when we had the same answers and descriptions, we received very different scores. Never leave early from lab or you are doomed.
10/16/2007
Grading totally based upon his whim. Did not appear to follow any logical grading scheme - most comments on different reports contradicted each other.
5/3/2007
My favorite class at WU. He did an excellent job teaching not only the practical applications of PChem, but also clarifying and tying together many concepts learned in 401. Highly recommended as a writing intensive, it is a very reasonable workload and the material is very interesting.
1/11/2007