An electron localization function study of the geometry of d0 molecules of the period 4 metals Ca to Mn

We have studied the geometry of the formally d(0) MXn (X = F, H, CH3 and O; n = 2-6) molecules of the period 4 metals from Ca to Mn by studying the topology of the electron localization function (ELF) in order to try to understand why many of these molecules have non-VSEPR geometries. The quantitative analysis of the core basin population shows that it is always larger than its conventional value (18) because, in the LCAO-MO scheme, the 3d basis functions centered on the metal noticeably contribute to the electron density within the core region associated with the M shell. Therefore, the density available to form the bonds is less than Z(M) - 18, the value adopted in electron counts. Under the influence of the ligands, these electrons cause the core to lose its spherical symmetry by the formation of opposite-spin pair localization basins, which in turn influence the geometry of the ligands if the interaction of the ligands with the core is sufficiently strong. All of the ligands considered in this study, except F, interact with the core sufficiently strongly to give non-VSEPR geometries, which we have rationalized on the basis of the ELF topology.