Oxygen (O₂) Lewis structure
12 valence electrons, linear
Build O₂ step by step in the Lewis Structure Generator
What is the Lewis structure of O₂?
Oxygen, O₂, has 12 valence electrons. Its two atoms are joined by one O=O double bond. It carries two lone pairs on each O. Every formal charge is zero. As two atoms it is linear, and the molecule is nonpolar.
Valence electrons in O₂
| Element | Group | Valence electrons | Atoms | Electrons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxygen | 16 | 6 | 2 | 12 |
| Total | 12 |
In one line: 2 × 6 = 12. Each atom brings the valence electrons its group gives it.
How to draw the O₂ Lewis structure
- Count the valence electrons. Valence electrons: each O 6. 2 × 6 = 12.
- Join the two atoms. With only two atoms there is no choice to make: they bond to each other.
- Join the atoms with single bonds. One single bond uses 2 electrons, leaving 12 − 2 = 10.
- Place the lone pairs. Neither atom is an outer one, so the 10 left go on the two atoms as three lone pairs on one O and two on the other. Now one O has 8 electrons round it and the other 6.
- Make multiple bonds where needed. One O has only 6 electrons, so one lone pair moves into the bond, making O=O, and both O now have 8.
Lone pairs and formal charges in O₂
| Atom | Number | Bonds | Lone pairs | Electrons round it | Formal charge, V − N − B/2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| O | 2 | one double bond | 2 | 8 | 6 − 4 − 2 = 0 |
V is the atom’s valence electrons, N its nonbonding electrons and B its bonding electrons. The formal charges add up to 0, the molecule’s overall charge.
Shape and polarity of O₂
| Central atom | none, two atoms |
|---|---|
| Electron geometry | linear |
| Molecular geometry | linear |
| Ideal bond angle | none, two atoms |
| Polarity, an estimate | nonpolar |
Two identical atoms share the electrons equally.
Notes on the O₂ Lewis structure
- Every electron here is paired, yet liquid oxygen clings to a magnet: O₂ has two unpaired electrons. No single Lewis structure shows them; a molecular orbital diagram does.
O₂ Lewis structure compared with its molecular orbital diagram
| Lewis structure | Molecular orbital diagram | |
|---|---|---|
| Bond order | 2 | 2 |
| Unpaired electrons | 0 | 2 |
In the molecular orbital diagram O₂’s 12 valence electrons put 8 in bonding orbitals and 4 in antibonding ones, so its bond order is (8 − 4)/2 = 2. The Lewis structure gives no unpaired electrons against the diagram’s two. The measured bond length is 121 pm (Huber and Herzberg, Constants of Diatomic Molecules, 1979). The Molecular Orbital Diagram Visualizer draws the diagram level by level.
Work with O₂
- Lewis Structure Generator: O₂ built step by step, with every formal charge worked out
- VSEPR Molecular Geometry: every VSEPR shape in 3D, with its bond angles
- Molecular Orbital Diagram Visualizer: the bond order and unpaired electrons of O₂
- All 78 Lewis structures: valence electrons, resonance, shape and polarity in one table