In
chemistry,
heterolysis or
heterolytic fission (from Greek ἕτερος,
heteros, "different," and λύσις,
lusis, "loosening") involves cleavage of a
chemical bond in a process where both of the electrons involved in the original bond remain with only one of the fragment species. During heterolytic bond cleavage in a neutral molecule, a
cation and an
anion will be generated. Typically, the more
electronegative fragment will retain the pair of electrons.