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. 2016 Mar 1;99(1):1–58. doi: 10.3184/003685016X14509452393033

Puzzles in Bonding and Spectroscopy: The Case of Dicarbon†

Roderick M Macrae 1,✉
PMCID: PMC10365436  PMID: 27120813

Abstract

The unstable molecule C2 has been of interest since its identification as the source of the “Swan band” features observable in the spectra of flames, carbon arcs, white dwarf stars, and comets, and it continues to serve as a focal point for experimental and theoretical discovery. Recent spectroscopic work has identified a quintet state of the molecule for the first time, while new insights into the bond order of C2 in its ground state have been provided by sophisticated computational methods based on valence bond theory. This article gives a review of spectroscopic and computational work on C2 including both historical background and the most recent discoveries.

Keywords: Chemical bonding, quantum chemistry, spectroscopy, dicarbon

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