---
title: "A gaseous sample of carbon monoxide, \\(\\text{CO(g)}\\), is exposed to various regions of electromagnetic radiation. Three distinct molecular transitions observed during the investigation are summarized in the table below.  | Transition | Description of molecular event | | :—: | :— | | \\(1\\) | Promotion of a valence electron from a bonding molecular orbital to an antibonding orbital | | \\(2\\) | Change in the vibrational state associated with the stretching of the \\(\\text{C}\\equiv\\text{O}\\) bond | | \\(3\\) | Change in the rotational state of the entire molecule around its center of mass |  Which of the following correctly ranks the transitions in order of the frequency of the absorbed photon, from highest frequency to lowest frequency?"
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url: "https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/123646/"
date_modified: "2026-09-28T12:01:53+00:00"
---

# A gaseous sample of carbon monoxide, \(\text{CO(g)}\), is exposed to various regions of electromagnetic radiation. Three distinct molecular transitions observed during the investigation are summarized in the table below.

| Transition | Description of molecular event |
| :—: | :— |
| \(1\) | Promotion of a valence electron from a bonding molecular orbital to an antibonding orbital |
| \(2\) | Change in the vibrational state associated with the stretching of the \(\text{C}\equiv\text{O}\) bond |
| \(3\) | Change in the rotational state of the entire molecule around its center of mass |

Which of the following correctly ranks the transitions in order of the frequency of the absorbed photon, from highest frequency to lowest frequency?

A gaseous sample of carbon monoxide, \(\text{CO(g)}\), is exposed to various regions of electromagnetic radiation. Three distinct molecular transitions observed during the investigation are summarized in the table below.

| Transition | Description of molecular event |
| :---: | :--- |
| \(1\) | Promotion of a valence electron from a bonding molecular orbital to an antibonding orbital |
| \(2\) | Change in the vibrational state associated with the stretching of the \(\text{C}\equiv\text{O}\) bond |
| \(3\) | Change in the rotational state of the entire molecule around its center of mass |

Which of the following correctly ranks the transitions in order of the frequency of the absorbed photon, from highest frequency to lowest frequency?

- **A.** \(\text{Transition } 3 > \text{Transition } 2 > \text{Transition } 1\)
- **B.** \(\text{Transition } 3 > \text{Transition } 1 > \text{Transition } 2\)
- **C.** \(\text{Transition } 1 > \text{Transition } 3 > \text{Transition } 2\)
- **D.** \(\text{Transition } 1 > \text{Transition } 2 > \text{Transition } 3\)

*The answer key and step-by-step explanation are available to logged-in users at https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/123646/*