The structure of the noble gas compound XeF4 is : — Chemical Bonding Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

Step 1: Determine the steric number for XeF4: Xenon has 8 valence electrons, 4 of which form single bonds with Fluorine, leaving 4 electrons as 2 lone pairs. Steric number = 4 bond pairs + 2 lone pairs = 6. Step 2: A steric number of 6 corresponds to sp3d2 hybridization (octahedral electron geometry). Step 3: According to VSEPR, the two lone pairs occupy opposite (axial) positions to minimize lp-lp repulsion, leaving the four fluorine atoms in a square planar shape. This matches option (a).