Virtual Hydrogen, a virtual reality education tool in physics and chemistry

Abstract

In efforts to explore possibilities of virtual reality (VR) as education tools, we focus on one of the most important subjects taught in undergraduate physics and chemistry classes, namely, the quantum atomic orbitals or wave functions of the hydrogen atom. Our goal is to enable students to experience attractive and enjoyable scenarios which make it more amenable to master the concepts of quantum mechanics or quantum chemistry. Along this line, we have built a virtual environment of the hydrogen atom, named “Virtual Hydrogen”, enabling to explore the atomic orbitals in 3D space. The most fundamental 21 atomic orbitals of hydrogen have been successfully visualized and will be experienced through modern VR head-mounted displays.