Fellow,American Physical Society.

Master Teacher Award, Fulbright college of Arts Sciences, 1996.

Ph.D., University of California at Irvine, 1967.

Research Associate, U.C. Irving, 1967-68.

Assistant Professor, University of Southern California, 1968-74.

Associate Professor, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1978-85.

Books authored: Unitary Calculus for Electronic Orbitals Springer, 1996 and Principles of Symmetry Dynamics and Spectroscopy, Wiley, 1993.

Professor Harter's primary interest is the theoretical studies of the symmetry and dynamics of polyatomic molecules.

DYNAMICS AND SPECTROSCOPY OF POLYATOMIC MOLECULES and ROTOR FRAMES

Atomic and molecular theory involving symmetry and group algebraic quantum analysis is one of Dr. Harter's areas of research. This also involves a lot of computer graphics and animation, and that is used in his classes as well.

Dr. Harter and his students were the first in 1986 to predict rotation-vibration spectra of the icosahedral soccer ball shaped "Buckyball" (C₆₀) molecule that later helped to prove its existence. A Nobel prize in chemistry was given in 1996 to Curl, Kroto, and Smalley who first made tiny amounts of C₆₀.

C₆₀ is in a family of spherical top molecules that includes tetrahedral methane gas CH₄, octahedral transformer dielectric SF₆, and icosahedral ¹²C₆₀, a Bose-ball with the highest point symmetry semi-rigid molecules can have. Spherical molecules have extraordinary quantum and spectroscopic effects due to their rotating quantum frames and internal nuclear spin and vibrational motion as it is coupled more or less strongly to its rotor frame. ¹³C₆₀, has "spin-gas" states.

Even higher symmetry and heretofore unexplored quantum frame effects are possible for non-rigid molecules such as a CH₄ or SF₆ with any of its atoms replaced by a "pinwheel" molecule like a methyl CH₃-group so that several quantum frames way either compete or else cooperate to make "super-frames." C₆₀ has many possible ways to make rotor complexes in gas phase, and it is the only molecule whose solid state may be entirely composed of free 3D rotors.

A very elementary quantum frame is that made by photon pairs, or for classical discussion, pairs of laser beams. Three such pairs are used in optical-molasses trapping. Use of home grown computer models and simulations of laser beam interference led to a revealing development of the theory of special relativity and its relation to quantum theory. Indeed, both turn out to be essentially the same subject easily visualized and quantified by elementary Euclidian ruler and compass geometry. See website: www.uark.edu/ua/pirelli/html/title_page.html

Interactive computer simulations help in thought experiments as well as in real ones. Since before 1984 Dr. Harter has developed many MacOS programs for classroom and student use and state-of-the-art tools for students to program their own high-performance interactive simulation programs (See Computer Simulations for details.)