Electronegativity is how well an atom can pull in electrons when it forms a bond with another atom.
When two atoms join together, the difference in their electronegativities can tell us if the bond is polar or nonpolar.
Here are the main points:
Nonpolar Bonds: If the difference in electronegativity is less than 0.5, like when two identical atoms bond (for example, Cl-Cl), the bond is nonpolar. This means the electrons are shared equally.
Polar Bonds: If the difference is between 0.5 and 1.7, like in H-Cl, the bond is polar. In this case, one atom pulls the electrons closer to itself, making one side slightly positive and the other side slightly negative.
This creates a dipole moment where one end of the molecule has a tiny positive charge, and the other end has a tiny negative charge. This change affects how the molecule looks and behaves.
For example, this is why water (H₂O) is polar, but oxygen (O₂) is not!
Electronegativity is how well an atom can pull in electrons when it forms a bond with another atom.
When two atoms join together, the difference in their electronegativities can tell us if the bond is polar or nonpolar.
Here are the main points:
Nonpolar Bonds: If the difference in electronegativity is less than 0.5, like when two identical atoms bond (for example, Cl-Cl), the bond is nonpolar. This means the electrons are shared equally.
Polar Bonds: If the difference is between 0.5 and 1.7, like in H-Cl, the bond is polar. In this case, one atom pulls the electrons closer to itself, making one side slightly positive and the other side slightly negative.
This creates a dipole moment where one end of the molecule has a tiny positive charge, and the other end has a tiny negative charge. This change affects how the molecule looks and behaves.
For example, this is why water (H₂O) is polar, but oxygen (O₂) is not!