Tetrahedral Complexes (Edexcel A Level Chemistry): Revision Note

Tetrahedral Complexes

• When there are four coordinate bonds the complexes often have a tetrahedral shape

  • Complexes with four chloride ions most commonly adopt this geometry

  • Chloride ligands are large, so only four will fit around the central metal ion

• The bond angles in tetrahedral complexes are 109.5^o

Example of a tetrahedral complex