What is the Lewis Structure for SF₂?

The Lewis structure for sulfur difluoride (SF₂) can be drawn by following these steps:

1. Count the total number of valence electrons. Sulfur has 6 valence electrons, and each fluorine contributes 7, giving us a total of 6 + 7*2 = 20 valence electrons.
2. Place the sulfur atom at the center since it’s less electronegative than fluorine. Arrange the two fluorine atoms around the sulfur atom.
3. Connect each fluorine atom to the sulfur atom with a single bond. This uses up 4 of the 20 valence electrons (2 electrons per bond).
4. This leaves us with 16 valence electrons. We now need to satisfy the octet rule for each fluorine atom. Each fluorine needs 6 more electrons, which we can add as three lone pairs on each fluorine.
5. After bonding and adding these lone pairs, sulfur will only have 4 electrons around it (from the bonds), meaning it has a total of 8 electrons when including the lone pairs from itself. The structure satisfies the octet rule for both the fluorine atoms.

The final Lewis structure looks like this:

   :F:
    |
   S
    |
   :F:

Here, S is surrounded by two single bonds to F atoms, and has 2 lone pairs of electrons. Each F has three lone pairs of electrons. This structure shows the distribution of electron pairs and highlights the molecular shape that leads to SF₂ being bent.