Which of the following xenon compounds is not possible?

Solution

1. Xenon is a noble gas with a closed-shell electronic configuration.
2. Excitation of electrons from the $5p$ orbital to the $5d$ orbital allows for the formation of covalent bonds.
3. Since each excitation promotes one electron, xenon can form bonds with an even number of fluorine atoms.
4. ${\text{XeF}}_3$ requires an odd number of unpaired electrons, which is not possible for xenon in its ground or excited states.
5. Hence the answer is (C).