Related Compounds
Dipolar compounds are usually not classified as zwitterions. For example amine oxides, which are often written as R3N+O−, are not zwitterions in terms of the definition, which specifies that there are unit electrical charges on atoms. The distinction lies in the fact that the plus and minus signs on the amine oxide signify formal charges, not electrical charges. Formal charges are used in valence bond theory for some canonical forms used to construct a resonance hybrid. In fact another theoretical representation of an amine oxide uses a dative covalent bond ≡N→O with no formal charges. Other compounds that are sometimes referred to as zwitterions, mistakenly according to the definition above, include nitrones and "dipolar compounds", such as a 1,2-dipole and a 1,3-dipole.
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