D orbitals

Here are the shapes of the S, P and D atomic orbitals:

It is necessary to learn the differences between the d orbitals, since it comes up when describing bonds. Convention is to take the z axis as the internuclear axis, which I will follow. This means:

d_z²: Cylindrical along the internuclear axis, so can contribute to sigma orbitals

d_xz and d_xy: These look like p orbitals along the internuclear axis, so can contribute to pi orbitals

d_yz and d_x²-_y²: These have no equivalent to what we've seen before. Four lobes from each atomic orbital can overlap to form weak delta (δ) molecular orbitals: