Van der Waals Forces
The collective name for the weak attractive forces between molecules arising from dipole interactions.
Formula / equation
E ∝ 1 / r⁶
Unit
kJ/mol
In depth
The family comprises London dispersion, dipole–dipole and dipole–induced dipole interactions. All fall off very steeply with distance, so they act only over short ranges, yet summed over a large surface they become substantial — which is how a gecko's foot adheres to glass.
Examples in the real world
They liquefy the noble gases at low temperature and hold layers of graphite together loosely enough to write with.