In 1999, chemists working for the Air Force Research
Laboratory reported that they had produced a compound
containing an unusual ion with the formula N5
+. This ion
had not been expected to exist, and its instability makes it
both diffi cult and dangerous to prepare.
Consider the possible Lewis structure below. Indicate the
hybridization expected for each nitrogen atom and the
expected bond angles.
N N N N N
Assuming that the structure shown above is correct, how
many of the five nitrogen atoms would always lie in the
same plane?