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1.1: Atomic and Molecular Properties

  • Page ID
    401680
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    The atomic and molecular properties are the intrinsic features associated with the system at the atomic and sub-atomic level.

    • 1.1.1: Atomic and Ionic Radius
      This page explains the various measures of atomic radius, and then looks at the way it varies around the Periodic Table - across periods and down groups. It assumes that you understand electronic structures for simple atoms written in s, p, d notation.
    • 1.1.2: Bond Lengths and Double-Bond Character
      Bond lengths frequently are cited as evidence for, or against, electron delocalization, although some caution should be exercised in this respect. For instance, if the hybrid structure of benzene is considered to be represented by the two possible Kekule structures, then each carbon-carbon bond should be halfway between a single bond and a double bond.
    • 1.1.3: Dipole Moments
      Dipole moments occur when there is a separation of charge. They can occur between two ions in an ionic bond or between atoms in a covalent bond; dipole moments arise from differences in electronegativity. The larger the difference in electronegativity, the larger the dipole moment. The distance between the charge separation is also a deciding factor into the size of the dipole moment. The dipole moment is a measure of the polarity of the molecule.
    • 1.1.4: Electronegativity
      Electronegativity is a measure of the tendency of an atom to attract a bonding pair of electrons. The Pauling scale is the most commonly used. Fluorine (the most electronegative element) is assigned a value of 4.0, and values range down to cesium and francium which are the least electronegative at 0.7.
    • 1.1.5: Molecular Polarity
      Polarity is a physical property of compounds which relates other physical properties such as melting and boiling points, solubility, and intermolecular interactions between molecules. For the most part, there is a direct correlation between the polarity of a molecule and number and types of polar or non-polar covalent bonds which are present. In a few cases, a molecule may have polar bonds, but in a symmetrical arrangement which then gives rise to a non-polar molecule such as carbon dioxide.

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    This page titled 1.1: Atomic and Molecular Properties is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Layne Morsch.

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