Linus Pauling in “The Nature of the Chemical Bond” (3rd Ed., Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1960, p. 95) stated, “The property of electronegativity represents the attraction of a neutral atom in a stable molecule for electrons”. Since a power of attraction involves a dependence on distance, it is surprising that no one has discussed the inherent distance dependence of electronegativity since Pauling's original paper in 1932. Our distance-dependent electronegativity function is shown to be consistent with the results of DFT calculations, to concur with the concept of electronegativity equalization, and even to remove the reliance on electronegativity differences for various property correlations. Experimental properties of BXn (n=1, 3) and CXn (n=1, 4) (X = halogen) species are correlated with electronegativity results, and some properties of BI and CI are estimated.
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