Lesson plan
Electron pair
In chemistry, an electron pair or Lewis pair consists of two electrons that occupy the same atomic or molecular orbital but have opposite spins. Gilbert N. Lewis introduced the concepts of both the electron pair and the covalent bond in a landmark paper he published in 1916. s depicting covalent (left) and polar covalent (right) bonding in a diatomic molecule. In both cases a bond is created by the formation of an electron pair. Because electrons are fermions, the Pauli exclusion principle forbids these particles from having all the same quantum numbers. Therefore, for two electrons to occupy the same orbital, and thereby have the same orbital quantum number, they must have different spin quantum numbers. This also limits the number of electrons in the same orbital to two. The pairing of spins is often energetically favorable, and electron pairs therefore play a large role in chemistry. They can form a chemical bond between two atoms, or they can occur as a lone pair of valence electrons. They also fill the core levels of an atom. Because the spins are paired, the magnetic moment of the electrons cancel one another, and the pair's contribution to magnetic properties is generally diamagnetic. Although a strong tendency to pair off electrons can be observed in chemistry, it is also possible for electrons to occur as unpaired electrons.…
Article summary
In chemistry, an electron pair or Lewis pair consists of two electrons that occupy the same atomic or molecular orbital but have opposite spins. Gilbert N. Lewis introduced the concepts of both the electron pair and the covalent bond in a landmark paper he published in 1916. s depicting covalent (left) and polar covalent (right) bonding in a diatomic molecule. In both cases a bond is created by the formation of an electron pair. Because electrons are fermions, the Pauli exclusion principle forbids these particles from having all the same quantum numbers. Therefore, for two electrons to occupy the same orbital, and thereby have the same orbital quantum number, they must have different spin quantum numbers. This also limits the number of electrons in the same orbital to two. The pairing of spins is often energetically favorable, and electron pairs therefore play a large role in chemistry. They can form a chemical bond between two atoms, or they can occur as a lone pair of valence electrons. They also fill the core levels of an atom. Because the spins are paired, the magnetic moment of the electrons cancel one another, and the pair's contribution to magnetic properties is generally diamagnetic. Although a strong tendency to pair off electrons can be observed in chemistry, it is also possible for electrons to occur as unpaired electrons.…
Key claims
- publication date: 1916 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- The record states that the publication date is "1916". What evidence would count against this claim?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1344304260
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.