What is the molecular orbital configuration of the O2 molecule?

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Q: What is the molecular orbital configuration of the O2 molecule?

Solution: The correct configuration for O2 is (σ1s)²(σ*1s)²(σ2s)²(σ*2s)²(σ2p)²(π2p)²(π*2p)¹.

Steps: 12

Step 1: Understand that O2 is a molecule made of two oxygen atoms.
Step 2: Know that each oxygen atom has 8 electrons, so O2 has a total of 16 electrons.
Step 3: Identify the order of filling molecular orbitals for diatomic molecules like O2: σ1s, σ*1s, σ2s, σ*2s, σ2p, π2p, π*2p.
Step 4: Fill the molecular orbitals with the 16 electrons, starting from the lowest energy level.
Step 5: Fill σ1s with 2 electrons: (σ1s)².
Step 6: Fill σ*1s with 2 electrons: (σ*1s)².
Step 7: Fill σ2s with 2 electrons: (σ2s)².
Step 8: Fill σ*2s with 2 electrons: (σ*2s)².
Step 9: Fill σ2p with 2 electrons: (σ2p)².
Step 10: Fill π2p with 4 electrons (2 in each π orbital): (π2p)²(π2p)².
Step 11: Place the last 2 electrons in the π*2p orbital: (π*2p)¹.
Step 12: Combine all the filled orbitals to get the final configuration: (σ1s)²(σ*1s)²(σ2s)²(σ*2s)²(σ2p)²(π2p)²(π*2p)¹.