In chemistry, physical chemistry is the study of the thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, electrochemistry, kinetics, and macroscopic and microscopic structures of atoms, molecules, chemical species, and chemical systems. [1] Physical chemistry deals with the interpretation of chemical phenomena and properties in terms of the underlying physical processes and with the development of techniques for their investigation. [2]

History
In 1885, German chemist Wilhelm Ostwald published Lehrbuh der Allgemeinen Chemie (Textbook of General Chemistry), the first textbook on physical chemistry (1885-87), and in 1887, together with Dutch chemist Jacobus van't Hoff, founded Zeitschrift fur Physikalische Chemie (Journal of Physical Chemistry), the first periodical in physical chemistry. [4] The phrase the "new physical chemistry", in relation to the works of Walther Nernst, was being used in 1895 to contrast with organic chemistry. [6] Other "founding fathers" of physical chemistry include: Willard Gibbs and Gilbert Lewis. [5]

Human chemistry
Interestingly, the newly launched science-based dating site ScientificMatch claims that it is matching people according to "physical chemistry", using the 1995 results of the famous "sweaty T-shirt study", which finds that people are most sexually attracted to mates having the most dissimilar major histocompatibility complex. [3] This, obviously, is a terminological mishap referring to the chemistry of the "physical" body verses the "physics" of chemistry.

References
1. (a) Alberty, Silbey. (2001). Physical Chemistry, 3rd Ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
(b) Daintith, John. (2004). Oxford Dictionary of Chemistry. New York: Oxford University Press.
2. Licker, Mark D. (2004). McGraw-Hill Concise Encyclopedia of Chemistry, New York: McGraw-Hill.
3. Physical chemistry defined – ScientificMatch.com.
4. Wilhelm Ostwald: the “Bruke” (Bridge) and other Connections to Other Bibliographic Activities at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century (PDF), 9-pages, by Thomas Hapke, [ChemHeritage.org].
5. Edsall, J. T. (1974). "Some notes and queries on the development of bioenergetics. Notes on some "founding fathers" of physical chemistry: J. Willard Gibbs, Wilhelm Ostwald, Walther Nernst, Gilbert Newton Lewis". Mol. Cell. Biochem. Nov. 5 (1-2): 103–12.
6. Nernst, Walther. (1895). Theoretical Chemistry: from the Standpoint of Avogadro’s Rule & Thermodynamics. MacMillan and Co.

Further reading
● Washburn, Edward. (1921). An Introduction to the Principles of Physical Chemistry: from the standpoint of modern Atomistics and Thermodynamics. McGraw-Hill.
● Lewis, William C.M. and Rice, James. (1922). A System of Physical Chemistry: Thermodynamics (Vol. II). Longmans, Green and Co.

External links
● Physical chemistry – Wikipedia.