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How do van der Waals forces hold some atoms and molecules together?
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The Bohr model describes the structure of atoms, in this case hydrogen.
Van der Waals forces are relatively weak, short-range electric forces that attract neutral atoms and molecules to one another. Unlike stronger ionic, covalent, or metallic bonds, these forces do not involve the sharing or permanent transfer of electrons.123
These forces arise from three primary mechanisms:
- Permanent Dipoles: Some molecules are naturally polar, meaning their electric charge is unevenly distributed. These permanent dipoles align with one another, creating an attractive force.1
- Induced Dipoles: A permanent dipole can distort the electron cloud of a nearby molecule, inducing a temporary dipole in it and creating an attractive interaction.1
- London Dispersion Forces: Even in nonpolar atoms or molecules, constant fluctuations in electron density create instantaneous, time-varying dipoles. These transient dipoles induce corresponding dipoles in neighboring particles, resulting in a cohesive force.14
These interactions are essential for the existence of condensed phases in many substances and are responsible for phenomena such as the layering of graphite in pencils.134