What happens to the atomic radius of elements as you move from left to right across a period?
1 answer:
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Answer:
Metallic bonding
Explanation:
Metals have low ionization energies. Therefore, their valence electrons are easily delocalized (attracted to the neighbouring metal atoms). These delocalized electrons are then not associated with a specific metal atom. Since the electrons are “free”, the metal atoms have become cations, and the electrons are free to move throughout the whole crystalline structure.
We say that a metal consists of an array of cations immersed in a sea of electrons .
The electrons act as a “glue” holding the cations together.
Metallic bonds are the attractive forces between the metal cations and the sea of electrons.
In an NaK alloy, for example, the Na and K atoms contribute their valence electrons to the "sea". The atoms aren’t bonded to each other, but they are held in place by the metallic bonding.
