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Chemistry LibreTexts

10.8: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    452788
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    Example and Directions
    Words (or words that have the same definition)The definition is case sensitive(Optional) Image to display with the definition [Not displayed in Glossary, only in pop-up on pages](Optional) Caption for Image(Optional) External or Internal Link(Optional) Source for Definition
    (Eg. "Genetic, Hereditary, DNA ...")(Eg. "Relating to genes or heredity")The infamous double helix https://bio.libretexts.org/CC-BY-SA; Delmar Larsen
    Glossary Entries
    Word(s)DefinitionImageCaptionLinkSource
    adhesive forceforce of attraction between molecules of different chemical identities    
    amorphous solid(also, noncrystalline solid) solid in which the particles lack an ordered internal structure    
    body-centered cubic (BCC) solidcrystalline structure that has a cubic unit cell with lattice points at the corners and in the center of the cell    
    body-centered cubic unit cellsimplest repeating unit of a body-centered cubic crystal; it is a cube containing lattice points at each corner and in the center of the cube    
    boiling pointtemperature at which the vapor pressure of a liquid equals the pressure of the gas above it    
    Bragg equationequation that relates the angles at which X-rays are diffracted by the atoms within a crystal    
    capillary actionflow of liquid within a porous material due to the attraction of the liquid molecules to the surface of the material and to other liquid molecules    
    Clausius-Clapeyron equationmathematical relationship between the temperature, vapor pressure, and enthalpy of vaporization for a substance    
    cohesive forceforce of attraction between identical molecules    
    condensationchange from a gaseous to a liquid state    
    coordination numbernumber of atoms closest to any given atom in a crystal or to the central metal atom in a complex    
    covalent network solidsolid whose particles are held together by covalent bonds    
    critical pointtemperature and pressure above which a gas cannot be condensed into a liquid    
    crystalline solidsolid in which the particles are arranged in a definite repeating pattern    
    cubic closest packing (CCP)crystalline structure in which planes of closely packed atoms or ions are stacked as a series of three alternating layers of different relative orientations (ABC)    
    depositionchange from a gaseous state directly to a solid state    
    diffractionredirection of electromagnetic radiation that occurs when it encounters a physical barrier of appropriate dimensions    
    dipole-dipole attractionintermolecular attraction between two permanent dipoles    
    dispersion force(also, London dispersion force) attraction between two rapidly fluctuating, temporary dipoles; significant only when particles are very close together    
    dynamic equilibriumstate of a system in which reciprocal processes are occurring at equal rates    
    face-centered cubic (FCC) solidcrystalline structure consisting of a cubic unit cell with lattice points on the corners and in the center of each face    
    face-centered cubic unit cellsimplest repeating unit of a face-centered cubic crystal; it is a cube containing lattice points at each corner and in the center of each face    
    freezingchange from a liquid state to a solid state    
    freezing pointtemperature at which the solid and liquid phases of a substance are in equilibrium; see also melting point    
    hexagonal closest packing (HCP)crystalline structure in which close packed layers of atoms or ions are stacked as a series of two alternating layers of different relative orientations (AB)    
    hole(also, interstice) space between atoms within a crystal    
    hydrogen bondingoccurs when exceptionally strong dipoles attract; bonding that exists when hydrogen is bonded to one of the three most electronegative elements: F, O, or N    
    induced dipoletemporary dipole formed when the electrons of an atom or molecule are distorted by the instantaneous dipole of a neighboring atom or molecule    
    instantaneous dipoletemporary dipole that occurs for a brief moment in time when the electrons of an atom or molecule are distributed asymmetrically    
    intermolecular forcenoncovalent attractive force between atoms, molecules, and/or ions    
    interstitial sitesspaces between the regular particle positions in any array of atoms or ions    
    ionic solidsolid composed of positive and negative ions held together by strong electrostatic attractions    
    isomorphouspossessing the same crystalline structure    
    meltingchange from a solid state to a liquid state    
    melting pointtemperature at which the solid and liquid phases of a substance are in equilibrium; see also freezing point    
    metallic solidsolid composed of metal atoms    
    molecular solidsolid composed of neutral molecules held together by intermolecular forces of attraction    
    normal boiling pointtemperature at which a liquid’s vapor pressure equals 1 atm (760 torr)    
    octahedral holeopen space in a crystal at the center of six particles located at the corners of an octahedron    
    phase diagrampressure-temperature graph summarizing conditions under which the phases of a substance can exist    
    polarizabilitymeasure of the ability of a charge to distort a molecule’s charge distribution (electron cloud)    
    simple cubic structurecrystalline structure with a cubic unit cell with lattice points only at the corners    
    simple cubic unit cell(also, primitive cubic unit cell) unit cell in the simple cubic structure    
    space latticeall points within a crystal that have identical environments    
    sublimationchange from solid state directly to gaseous state    
    supercritical fluidsubstance at a temperature and pressure higher than its critical point; exhibits properties intermediate between those of gaseous and liquid states    
    surface tensionenergy required to increase the area, or length, of a liquid surface by a given amount    
    tetrahedral holetetrahedral space formed by four atoms or ions in a crystal    
    triple pointtemperature and pressure at which three phases of a substance are in equilibrium    
    unit cellsmallest portion of a space lattice that is repeated in three dimensions to form the entire lattice    
    vacancydefect that occurs when a position that should contain an atom or ion is vacant    
    van der Waals forceattractive or repulsive force between molecules, including dipole-dipole, dipole-induced dipole, and London dispersion forces; does not include forces due to covalent or ionic bonding, or the attraction between ions and molecules    
    vapor pressure(also, equilibrium vapor pressure) pressure exerted by a vapor in equilibrium with a solid or a liquid at a given temperature    
    vaporizationchange from liquid state to gaseous state    
    viscositymeasure of a liquid’s resistance to flow    
    X-ray crystallographyexperimental technique for determining distances between atoms in a crystal by measuring the angles at which X-rays are diffracted when passing through the crystal    

    10.8: Key Terms is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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