Section 5
Molecular Orbital Theory
Book
Version 33
By Boundless
By Boundless
Boundless Chemistry
Chemistry
by Boundless
6 concepts
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/30076/square/bonding diagram for he2.jpg)
Bonding and Antibonding Molecular Orbitals
Bonding and antibonding orbitals are illustrated in MO diagrams, and are useful for predicting the strength and existence of chemical bonds.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/11734/square/300px-mo-diagram-dihelium.jpg)
Bond Order
Bond order is the number of chemical bonds between a pair of atoms.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/11722/square/mo-20diagram-20h2.jpg)
Linear Combination of Atomic Orbitals (LCAO)
An LCAO approximation is a quantum superposition of atomic orbitals, used to calculate molecular orbitals in quantum chemistry.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/11744/square/317px-nitrogen-3d-vdw.jpg)
Homonuclear Diatomic Molecules
Homonuclear diatomic molecules are composed of only one element.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/11756/square/clf.jpg)
Heteronuclear Diatomic Molecules
Heteronuclear diatomic molecules are composed of two atoms of two different elements.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/11746/raw/water-molecule-3d.jpg)
Polyatomic Molecules
A polyatomic molecule is a single entity composed of at least three covalently-bonded atoms.