A question from the exam I gave my AP students last week:
In the film Galaxy Quest, the NSEA Protector uses a ‘beryllium sphere’ as a power source. This is a clear homage to Star Trek’s ‘dilithium crystals’, so it is possible that the beryllium in the spheres also exists in diatomic form as ‘diberyllium’.
a. Construct a molecular orbital diagram to determine the bond order for diberyllium (Be2). Could this molecule actually exist? If it did, would it be paramagnetic or diamagnetic?
b. Explain in terms of electron configuration why diberyllium is not observed in nature.
c. Two possible ions derived from diberyllium are (Be2)+ and (Be2)2-. Which of these would be more stable? Justify your answer.