Group theory of chemical elements. Structure and properties of elements and compounds (Q531034)

When I received this book for review, something touched me, though I didn't understand what... In the end of the sixties of the last century I was a student in theoretical physics. At that time, it was very fashionable among us the theory of unitary symmetry which was independently built by \textit{M. Gell-Mann} [The eightfold way: a theory of strong interaction symmetry. CalTech Rep. CTSL-20 (1961)] and \textit{Y. Ne'eman} [``Derivation of strong interactions from a gauge invariance'', Nucl. Phys. 26, No. 2, 222--229 (1961; \url{doi:10.1016/0029-5582(61)90134-1})]. I recall that the first book I then opened to learn about this staff, was the book ``The theory of unitary symmetry'' by \textit{Yu. B. Rumer} and \textit{A. I. Fet} published in Russian [Moscow: Nauka (1970)]. \textit{A. I. Fet} was the co-author of this book and the author of the book under review, though with different subject, viz., ``Group Theory of Chemical Elements. Structure and Properties of Elements and Compounds'' [Berlin: De Gruyter (2016; Zbl 1356.81006)]. In the introduction, A. I. Fet recollects that while working on the book on the unitary symmetry, Yu. B. Rumer had the idea to apply the same approach to the system of chemical elements. Since all the latter obey many-electron Schrödinger equation of which the 90th anniversary falls on the previous year, this idea is equivalent to find out the symmetry group of each equation that can classify all chemical elements and their compounds in a group-theoretical manner. This is actually the key program of the present book that is realized in six Chapters and two Appendices. Chapter 1, `Symmetries of a quantum system', is introductory and composed, on the one side, of a standard material, such as, the rotation group approach to the hydrogen atom, the quantum problem of electron in the Coulomb field, and the concept of the broken symmetry, and, on the other, on the classical work by \textit{V. Fock} [Bull. Acad. Sci. URSS 1935, No. 2, 169--188 (1935; Zbl 0012.18401)]. The latter is thoroughly presented in Appendix A. Chapter 2 entitled `Observables of a quantum system', demonstrates how to derive observables from a symmetry group, what are quantum numbers of symmetry groups and their physical meaning. The third chapter introduces the main ideas of Lie groups and algebras relying of the background of two preceding chapters and illustrates these ideas with many examples. Chapter 4 outlines the principles of particle classification, among which are the concept of spin and isospin, \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) and \(\mathrm{SU}(6)\) groups, and the mass formula within the \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) symmetry, the baryon octet and decuplet. The next two chapters present the main content of the present book. The symmetrical aspects of chemical elements are treated in Chapter 5 that includes the following topics: the conformal group and its special representation, mass formula for atomic weights. Chapter 6 gives the classification and chemical properties of elements by means of considering small multiplets and chemical properties, and the operators of chemical affinity. Summarizing, I believe that this is the excellent tutorial book for students and PhD students in chemistry, quantum chemistry, atomic and molecular physics. Besides, I would recommend it to all researchers who are expected to perceive the concept of molecular symmetry practically, interactively with molecules, and thus to directly apply them in their own research.