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Bonding and Antibonding Molecular Orbitals
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| Bonding MO |
Antibonding MO |
| Bonding molecular orbital is formed by the addition of overlapping of atomic orbitals. The wave function of the bonding MO may be written
as: Ψ(MO) = ΨA + ΨB
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Antibonding molecular orbital is formed by the subtraction of overlapping of atomic orbitals. The wave function for the antibonding MO may be written as:
Ψ (MO) = ΨA - ΨB
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| They are formed when the lobes of the combining atomic orbitals have same sign |
They are formed when the lobes of the combining atomic orbitals have opposite sign |
| It has greater electron density in the region between the two nuclei of bonded atoms |
It has lesser electron density in the region between the two nuclei of the atoms |
| The forces in this orbital tend to bring the two nuclei of the atoms together. Therefore, electrons in the bonding MO contribute to attraction between the two atoms |
The forces in this orbital push the nuclei apart. Therefore, the electrons in anti bonding MO contribute to repulsion between the atoms |
| It possesses lower energy than the isolated atomic orbitals |
It possesses higher energy than the isolated atomic orbitals |
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