Intermolecular Forces Vocabulary

Question	Answer
Intramolecular force	the combination of attractive and repulsive electrical forces between pairs of electrons within a molecule
Intermolecular forces	the forces that act between molecules and ions
Van der Waals forces	Relatively weak electric forces that attract neutral molecules to one another in gases, as well as in almost all organic liquids and solids
(London) dispersion forces	An intermolecular force between molecules caused by the presence of temporary dipoles in the molecules
Temporary dipole	The separation of charge produced in an atom or molecule by a momentary uneven distribution of electrons
Dipole-dipole interaction	An attractive force between polar molecules
Dipole-induced dipole interaction	An attraction between a polar molecule and the oppositely charged pole it temporarily induces in another molecule
Condensed phases	Solids and liquids; called condensed phases because their particles are close together
Induced dipole	The separation of a charge produced in an atom or molecule by a momentary uneven distribution of electrons
Ion-dipole interaction	An attractive force between an ion and a molecule that has a permanent dipole
Sphere of hydration	A cluster of water molecules surrounding an ion in an aqueous solution
Hydrogen bond	The strongest dipole-dipole interaction; occurs between a hydrogen atom bonded to a small, highly electronegative element (O, N, F) and an atom of oxygen or nitrogen in another polar molecule

Resource summary

	Created by Kristen Wislowski about 2 years ago