Given below are two statements:
Statement I: A hypothetical diatomic molecule with bond order zero is quite stable.
Statement II: As bond order increases, the bond length increases.
In the light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:

Question

Question

This question was previously asked in

NEET 2025 Official Paper (Held On: 04 May, 2025)

Answer 1

CONCEPT:

Bond Order and Bond Stability

Bond Order is defined as the number of chemical bonds between a pair of atoms. It can be determined using Molecular Orbital Theory (MOT).
A bond order of zero means that there are equal numbers of bonding and antibonding electrons, resulting in no net bond formation.
A molecule with a bond order of zero is considered unstable and cannot exist under normal conditions.

Bond Order and Bond Length

Bond order is inversely related to bond length. As bond order increases, the bond strength increases, and the bond length decreases.
Higher bond order indicates stronger bonds, which are shorter in length.

EXPLANATION:

Statement I: "A hypothetical diatomic molecule with bond order zero is quite stable." This statement is false. A bond order of zero implies no bond formation, and the molecule would not exist as a stable entity.
Statement II: "As bond order increases, the bond length increases." This statement is also false. As bond order increases, bond strength increases, and bond length decreases.

Therefore, the correct answer is: Option 2: Both Statement I and Statement II are false.