Momentum Distribution in Molecular Systems

The momentum distribution has been calculated for an electron in one of the hybridized orbitals of a carbon atom, and is shown as a function of the degree of hybridization. The mean momentum shows a steady increase from pure s to pure p binding. Similar calculations have been made for the momentum distribution in the C—H bond, and it is shown that this also depends upon the degree of s-p mixing. The mean momentum for the bond is less than for an isolated hybridized carbon orbital, but behaves similarly to such an orbital when the degree of hybridization is varied. The differences are about within the limit of experimental determination.