ABSTRACT
It is important for the pharmacist to have a fundamental understanding of the states of matter in order to understand the various dosage forms. There are four states of matter — gas, liquid, solid, and plasma — and the pharmacist will encounter three of these either through dispensing them or consulting on these pharmaceutical preparations. This chapter reviews the forces that allow these states to exist, addresses the classes of bonds in molecules, and also reviews some aspects of thermodynamics. The structure of matter and the bonds holding matter together are of paramount importance for pharmacists to understand since the drugs and dosage forms they will consult or dispense are composed of matter. An example of ionic bonding is the complete transfer of an electron from sodium. Atoms can interact to complete their outer shell by stealing an electron or by sharing an electron. These interactions of atoms can lead to dipole moments of the molecule.
