What Is The Structure Of AuCl3?

The structure of AuCl3, or gold(III) chloride, is a trigonal planar molecule with an Au atom at the center and three Cl atoms bonded to it in a flat triangle arrangement. The Au-Cl bonds are covalent and have a bond length of around 2.29 Å. The molecule has a total of 24 valence electrons, with the Au atom contributing 11 and each Cl atom contributing 7. The electron configuration of AuCl3 is [Xe]4f14 5d9 6s1, with the 5d orbital of the Au atom participating in bonding with the Cl atoms. The molecule has a slight polarization due to the electronegativity difference between Au and Cl, with the electron density being slightly higher on the Cl atoms.