Uncertainty Quantification for <i>In Silico</i> Chemistry

The rapid growth of worldwide computing power has transformed <i>in silico</i> chemistry into a discipline that is integrated into the daily work of many chemists. Nowadays, researchers find it increasingly straightforward to predict a wide range of molecular properties and chemical processes at reasonable computational cost. The resulting abundance of data generated by quantum chemistry, molecular dynamics simulations, and chemical machine learning naturally raises questions about accuracy, precision, and reliability as well as the systematic treatment of errors and uncertainties. Addressing these questions through rigorous mathematical frameworks is at the heart of uncertainty quantification. In the past years, the incorporation of uncertainty quantification into <i>in silico</i> chemistry has gained attention, motivated by its ability to provide deeper insights into chemical phenomena. In this review, we establish a common language for uncertainty quantification with respect to <i>in silico</i> chemistry, introduce the key mathematical formalisms, and survey the growing body of work that applies uncertainty quantification across different areas of <i>in silico</i> chemistry.

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Publication Details

Journal
Chemical Reviews
Published
2026-03-04
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.5c00931
Primary Topic
Probabilistic and Robust Engineering Design
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Uncertainty Quantification for In Silico Chemistry

Barbara Kirchner, Tom Frömbgen, Jonny Proppe, Elizaveta Surzhikova et al.
Chemical Reviews
Probabilistic and Robust Engineering Design
article

Uncertainty Quantification for In Silico Chemistry

Barbara Kirchner, Tom Frömbgen, Jonny Proppe, Elizaveta Surzhikova, Jürgen Dölz, Christoph R. Jacob
article en

Abstract

The rapid growth of worldwide computing power has transformed <i>in silico</i> chemistry into a discipline that is integrated into the daily work of many chemists. Nowadays, researchers find it increasingly straightforward to predict a wide range of molecular properties and chemical processes at reasonable computational cost. The resulting abundance of data generated by quantum chemistry, molecular dynamics simulations, and chemical machine learning naturally raises questions about accuracy, precision, and reliability as well as the systematic treatment of errors and uncertainties. Addressing these questions through rigorous mathematical frameworks is at the heart of uncertainty quantification. In the past years, the incorporation of uncertainty quantification into <i>in silico</i> chemistry has gained attention, motivated by its ability to provide deeper insights into chemical phenomena. In this review, we establish a common language for uncertainty quantification with respect to <i>in silico</i> chemistry, introduce the key mathematical formalisms, and survey the growing body of work that applies uncertainty quantification across different areas of <i>in silico</i> chemistry.

Chemical Reviews
University of Bonn (DE), Instituto de Física Teórica (ES), Technische Universität Braunschweig (DE)
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 38%
Probabilistic and Robust Engineering Design
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