Question

How many types of hybridisation are possible for complexes with a coordination number of 4?

(a) 1

(b) 2

(c) 3

(d) 4

This question was posed to me at a job interview.

I'm obligated to ask this question of Bonding in Coordination Compounds in portion Coordination Compounds of Chemistry – Class 12

Answer 1

The correct option is (b) 2

Easy explanation: According to VBT, a complex with CN=4 can have two possible types of hybridisation and hence geometries. The sp^3 hybridisation results in tetrahedral geometry and dsp^2 hybridisation results in square planar geometry.