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Article: Molecular Orbital Theory
- Article from:
- Chemistry: Foundations and Applications
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CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 The Gale Group, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Molecular Orbital Theory
The molecular orbital (MO) theory is a way of looking at the structure of a molecule by using
molecular
orbitals that belong to the molecule as a whole
rather than to the individual atoms. When simple bonding occurs between two atoms, the pair of electrons forming the bond occupies an MO that is a mathematical combination of the wave functions of the atomic orbitals of the two atoms involved. The MO method originated in the work of Friedrich Hund and Robert S. Mulliken.
When atoms combine to form a molecule, the number of orbitals in the molecule equals the number of orbitals in the combining atoms. When two very simple atoms, each with one atomic orbital, ...