Chemical Bonding & Molecular Structure

Those species which have unpaired electrons are called paramagnetic species.

And those species which have no unpaired electrons are called diamagnetic species.

(A)   $N_2$ has 14 electrons.

Moleculer orbital configuration of $N_2$

= ${\sigma _{1{s^2}}}\,\sigma _{1{s^2}}^ * \,{\sigma _{2{s^2}}}\,\sigma _{2{s^2}}^ * \,{\pi _{2p_x^2}}\, = \,{\pi _{2p_y^2}}\,{\sigma _{2p_z^2}}$

Here no unpaired electron present, so it is diamagnetic.

(B)   $O_2$ has 16 electrons.

Moleculer orbital configuration of $O_2$ is

${\sigma _{1{s^2}}}\,\sigma _{1{s^2}}^ * \,\,{\sigma _{2{s^2}}}\,\,\sigma _{2{s^2}}^ * \,\,{\sigma _{2p_z^2}}\,\,{\pi _{2p_x^2}}\,= \,{\pi _{2p_y^2}}\,\pi _{2p_x^1}^ * = \,\,\pi _{2p_y^1}^ * $

Here 2 unpaired electrons present, so it is paramagnetic.

(C)    $S_2$ has 32 electrons.

It also has 2 unpaired electrons like $O_2$, so it is paramagnetic.

(D)   $C_2$ has 12 electrons.

Moleculer orbital configuration of $C_2$

= ${\sigma _{1{s^2}}}\,\sigma _{1{s^2}}^ * \,{\sigma _{2{s^2}}}\,\sigma _{2{s^2}}^ * \,{\pi _{2p_x^2}}\, = \,{\pi _{2p_y^2}}$

Here no unpaired electron present, so it is diamagnetic.