Oxidation state

[Allison Young 1K]

Is the oxidation number of molecules like O2 and H2 just 0?

[Andres Reynoso 1J]

In short, yes.
The oxidation number represents the number of electrons that an element can lose (if negative) or gain (if positive), relative to the electronegativity of any other element is in combination with. Because O₂ and H₂ have the same electronegativity, respectively, their oxidation numbers are 0.

[Cassandra Mullen 1E]

The uncombined diatomic elements have an oxidation state of 0. You can also observe that there is no superscript indicating a charge on the molecule.

[Jennifer Ho 1K]

Yes, because there is no net charge on the molecule, and the each oxygen/hydrogen atom will have the same oxidation number in each case, giving each atom an oxidation number of zero.

[Kailey Brodeur 1J]

O2 and H2 are neutral molecules; they are not ions. Only ions or ionic compounds have an oxidation number. For instance, the hydrogen ion has a +1 oxidation number and an oxygen ion has a -2 oxidation number.

[Jaewoo Jo 2L]

If it's a halogen or H2 (stable elements) and it's are diatomic, it still has an oxidation number of zero.