RE-NEET 2026 Chemistry Crystal Field Theory MCQ Question with Solution

According to crystal field theory, the correct order of ligands with respect to their decreasing order of field strength is

A

CO > H₂O > NH₃ > Cl⁻

B

Cl⁻ > H₂O > NH₃ > CO

C

Cl⁻ > NH₃ > H₂O > CO

D

CO > NH₃ > H₂O > Cl⁻

Option D

Topic: Crystal Field Theory Difficulty: 🟡 Medium

Field strength follows the spectrochemical series:

\boxed{CO>NH_3>H_2O>Cl^-}

Why? Stronger ligand → causes greater splitting $(\Delta)$ of d-orbitals.

They are incorrect because they reverse the known order of ligand field strength.

📌 NCERT: Ligands can be arranged in a spectrochemical series according to their increasing field strength.

🧠 Easy recall: CO > NH₃ > H₂O > Cl⁻ → Strong → Weak

Found an issue with this question?

RE-NEET 2026 Chemistry Crystal Field Theory MCQ Question