Question

The Crystal Field Theory (CFT) of coordination compounds is based on the effect of different crystal fields (provided by the ligands taken as point charges) on the degeneracy of d-orbital energies of the central metal atom/ion. The splitting of the d-orbitals provides different electronic arrangements in strong and weak crystal fields. In tetrahedral coordination entity formation, the d-orbital splitting is smaller as compared to the octahedral entity.
What is crystal field splitting energy?

Hint:

Crystal field splitting energy is crucial for determining the electronic configuration and colour of coordination compounds.

Answer 1

Crystal field splitting energy (\(\Delta_0\)) is the energy difference between the higher and lower energy d-orbitals in a metal complex due to the ligand field. This energy difference occurs when the ligand field causes degeneracy of the metal ion’s d-orbitals to split into two sets, depending on the geometry of the complex.