Waalsbound

Waalsbound is a term used in physics and chemistry to describe systems in which binding and cohesion are primarily governed by van der Waals forces rather than covalent, ionic, or metallic bonds. The concept emphasizes noncovalent interactions that arise from transient dipoles and induced dipoles, including London dispersion forces, dipole-dipole interactions, and hydrogen-bonding contributions that are not the primary bonding type.

Mechanism: Atoms and molecules experience mutual attraction at short range due to fluctuations in electron distribution; in macroscopic materials this leads to cohesion between layers or molecules.

Waalsbound materials include layered crystals such as graphite and MoS2, molecular crystals, and supramolecular assemblies. In such systems, layers can be exfoliated or sheared because the interlayer binding is relatively weak compared to intralayer bonds. In chemistry, Waalsbound complexes form via noncovalent binding between host and guest molecules, enabling recognition and self-assembly.

Applications: in nanotechnology and materials science, Waalsbound structures enable heterostructures, lubrication, and mechanical exfoliation. In drug design and catalysis, noncovalent binding underlies selectivity and assembly.

Modeling: theoretical descriptions commonly use potential energy terms such as the Lennard-Jones potential to describe van der Waals attractions; more sophisticated methods include dispersion-corrected density functional theory and many-body perturbation theory.