My CV measurements result in a current-voltage curve (IV curve). I am interested in determining the HOMO and LUMO levels of the material. I've carried out CV measurements on a few different types of material (with a ferrocene reference). Available here Image Courtesy:ġ.I'm a physicist, so I apologize if these are obvious questions. “Introduction to Molecular Orbital Theory.” ACID_BASE INDICATORS, Henry Rzepa. “Ch 10: Introduction to MO Theory.” Ch 13 – NMR Basics. Though there are several differences between these two types, the key difference between Homo and Lumo is that Homo donates electrons whereas Lumo receives electrons. The frontier molecular orbital theory explains the formation of HOMO and LUMO type molecular orbitals. The below infographic presents more details on the difference between Homo and Lumo. Moreover, the presence of HOMO is characteristic for nucleophiles while the presence of LUMO is characteristic for electrophiles. As the key difference between Homo and Lumo, we can say that the HOMO can donate electrons whereas the LUMO can receive electrons. Both these forms of orbitals are important in covalent chemical bonding, especially in pi bond formation. HOMO stands for highest occupied molecular orbital while the term LUMO stands for lowest unoccupied molecular orbital. What is the Difference Between Homo and Lumo?

Apart from that, these molecular orbitals are characteristic for electrophilic substances. This is because the energy of these orbitals is very high and electrons tend to occupy in low energy levels first. As its name implies, these orbitals are unoccupied thus, contains no electrons. These molecular orbitals can receive electrons from HOMO. LUMO stands for lowest unoccupied molecular orbital. Moreover, in the presence of light, electron excitations can donate electrons from HOMO to LUMO. This is why we call them “occupied orbitals”. Therefore, electrons tend to hold in these molecular orbitals because electrons try to fill into the low energy levels first. The presence of these molecular orbitals is characteristic for nucleophilic substances. These molecular orbitals are the most available form for covalent chemical bonding. This is because these molecular orbitals contain weakly attached electrons. The electrons in these molecular orbitals can be donated to the LUMO type molecular orbitals. HOMO stands for highest occupied molecular orbital. Side by Side Comparison – Homo vs Lumo in Tabular Form When forming these molecular orbitals, they split into two forms as HOMO and LUMO. This electron sharing forms a covalent bond between the atoms.

Molecular orbitals form from the combination of atomic orbitals of two separate atoms in order to share their electrons. A molecular orbital gives the most probable location of an electron in an atom. The term HOMO stands for “highest occupied molecular orbital” while the term LUMO stands for “lowest unoccupied molecular orbital”. The terms HOMO and LUMO are under the subtopic “ molecular orbital theory” in general chemistry. The key difference between Homo and Lumo is that the HOMO donates electrons whereas the LUMO receives electrons.

Lumo and humo