Linked from
The 43 pages that link to Potential energy surface, each with the reason it gives.
Molecular dynamicsRelated: The simulated forces are derived from slopes on this surface.
Bond lengthRelated: Bond length corresponds to a low-energy separation along the nuclear coordinate.
Steric effectsRelated: Steric costs appear as energy changes across molecular geometries.
Hellmann–Feynman theoremRelated: Its gradients provide forces on nuclei through the theorem.