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Dipole-Dipole Forces

If you compare fluorine molecules F-F with H-Cl molecules, the molecules have the same shape and number of electrons.
Fluorine molecules are non-polar and hydrogen chloride molecules are polar.
All molecules have London forces, but H-Cl has additional permanent dipole-dipole interactions so has a higher boiling point.
In the solid state, simple molecules form a regular structure called a simple molecular lattice with molecules held in place by weak intermolecular forces.

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Specification: AQA Chemistry (7404), AS-level, 3.1.3.7 Forces between molecules. Topic: Bonding.

Key terms in this lesson

Dipole
A separation of opposite partial charges caused by an uneven distribution of the bonding electron pair.
London forces
Weak intermolecular forces caused by instantaneous dipoles inducing dipoles in neighbouring molecules.

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