molecules Review Valence Bond Theory—Its Birth, Struggles with Molecular Orbital Theory, Its Present State and Future Prospects Sason Shaik 1,* , David Danovich 1 and Philippe C. Hiberty 2,* 1 Institute of Chemistry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel;
[email protected] 2 CNRS, Institut de Chimie Physique UMR8000, Université Paris-Saclay, 91405 Orsay, France * Correspondence:
[email protected] (S.S.);
[email protected] (P.C.H.) Abstract: This essay describes the successive births of valence bond (VB) theory during 1916–1931. The alternative molecular orbital (MO) theory was born in the late 1920s. The presence of two seemingly different descriptions of molecules by the two theories led to struggles between the main proponents, Linus Pauling and Robert Mulliken, and their supporters. Until the 1950s, VB theory was dominant, and then it was eclipsed by MO theory. The struggles will be discussed, as well as the new dawn of VB theory, and its future. Keywords: valence bond; molecular orbital; Lewis; electron-pair bonds; Pauling; Mulliken; Hund; Hückel 1. Introduction Citation: Shaik, S.; Danovich, D.; This essay tells briefly a story of the emerging two major quantum mechanical theories, Hiberty, P.C. Valence Bond valence bond (VB) theory and molecular orbital (MO) theory, which look as two different Theory—Its Birth, Struggles with descriptions of the same reality, but are actually not. We discuss the struggles between Molecular Orbital Theory, Its Present the two main groups of followers of Pauling and Mulliken, and the ups and downs in the State and Future Prospects. Molecules popularity of the two methods among chemists, and then the fall of VB theory only to be 2021, 26, 1624.