## Hybridized orbital number

$sp, sp^{2}, sp^{3}, dsp^{3}, d^{2}sp^{3}$

Chris Tai 1B
Posts: 102
Joined: Sat Aug 24, 2019 12:16 am

### Hybridized orbital number

How do you determine whether the hybridization of the valence electrons has a 2 compared to 3 in front of it?
For instance, why is the bond between the carbon and hydrogen sigma(H1s^2, C2sp^2) instead of sigma(H1s^2, C3sp^2)? Could someone give me an example of an atom that forms 3sp^2 or 3sp^3 hybridizations compared to an atom that forms 2sp^2 or 2sp^3 hybridizations?

Veronica_Lubera_2A
Posts: 106
Joined: Sat Sep 14, 2019 12:16 am
Been upvoted: 1 time

### Re: Hybridized orbital number

The coefficient in front of the hybridization is the row number. That is why when C is in the second row, it has a 2sp2 bond hybridization.

An example with sp3 hybridization is H2O: the Oxygen will have 2sp3 hybridization because it is in the second row and has 4 regions of electron density (2 single bonds and 2 lone pairs around it).

Another example, PCL3, also has sp3 hybridization (3 single bonds and a lone pair). But Phosphorous in this case has 3sp3 hybridization because it is in the third row of the periodic table.