Hypothetical Helium Molecule (He₂)

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Each helium atom has two electrons in 1s-orbital and therefore, there are four electrons in He₂ molecule. These electrons will be accommodated in si1ls and s*1s MOs as shown below.

fig 1.18 - Molecular orbital energy level diagram for He₂ molecule (hypothetical)The electronic configuration for helium molecule may be written as:

He₂: (s1s)² (s*1s)²

The zero bond order value indicates that there is no net bonding and He₂ molecule should not be formed. In fact, there is no experimental evidence for the existence of this molecule.