Structure and properties of nitroso compounds

Abstract

The electronic structure of organic compounds containing NO bonds has been considered in relation to their observed lengths and characteristic frequencies. The relation between these properties and “bond-order” has been examined for a number of molecules and ions for which the electronic structures are well defined. These relationships are then used for the discussion of other compounds for which the electronic structures are less certain. It has been shown that many of the molecules contain bonds of non-integral order; structures in which the NO bonds contain an odd number of electrons have been proposed in certain cases, the double-quartet hypothesis being used to describe the electron distribution. It has been shown that the pattern of bond lenghts and characteristic frequencies can then be understood, as well as such unexplained observations as the dimerization of alkyl nitroso-compounds and the non-existence of dimers of nitrosyl halides.