Electron configurations of lithium and fluorine. Lithium has one electron in its outer shell, held rather loosely because the ionization energy is low. Fluorine carries 7 electrons in its outer shell. When one electron moves from lithium to fluorine, each ion acquires the noble gas configuration. The bonding energy from the electrostatic attraction of the two oppositely-charged ions has a large enough negative value that the overall bonded state energy is lower than the unbonded state

Ionic bonds are a type of chemical bond based on electrostatic forces between two oppositely-charged ions. In ionic bond formation, a metal donates an electron, due to a low electronegativity to form a positive ion or cation. In ordinary table salt, the bonds between the sodium and chlorine ions are ionic bonds. Often ionic bonds form between metals and non-metals. The non-metal atom has an electron configuration just short of a noble gas structure. They have high electronegativity, and so readily gain electrons to form negative ions or anions. The two or more ions are then attracted to each other by electrostatic forces. Such bonds are stronger than hydrogen bonds, but similar in strength to covalent bonds. Image File history File links Diagram of electron transfer. ... Image File history File links Diagram of electron transfer. ... Electron atomic and molecular orbitals In atomic physics and quantum chemistry, the electron configuration is the arrangement of electrons in an atom, molecule or other body. ... General Name, Symbol, Number lithium, Li, 3 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 2, s Appearance silvery white/gray Atomic mass 6. ... General Name, Symbol, Number fluorine, F, 9 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 2, p Appearance Yellowish brown gas Atomic mass 18. ... The ionization energy (IE) of an atom or of a molecule is the energy required to strip it of an electron. ... An ion is an atom or group of atoms that normally are electrically neutral and achieve their status as an ion by loss (or addition) of an electron. ... For the musical band, see Noble Gas (band) The noble gases are the chemical elements in group 18 (old-style Group 0) of the periodic table. ... It has been suggested that Coulombs law be merged into this article or section. ... A chemical bond is the physical phenomenon of chemical substances being held together by attraction of atoms to each other through sharing, as well as exchanging, of electrons or electrostatic forces. ... In physics, the electrostatic force is the force arising between static (that is, non-moving) electric charges. ... An ion is an atom or group of atoms that normally are electrically neutral and achieve their status as an ion by loss (or addition) of an electron. ... Electronegativity is a measure of the ability of an atom or molecule to attract electrons in the context of a chemical bond. ... A cation is an ion with positive charge. ... Edible salt is a mineral, one of the few rocks people eat. ... General Name, Symbol, Number sodium, Na, 11 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 3, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 22. ... General Name, Symbol, Number chlorine, Cl, 17 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 3, p Appearance yellowish green Atomic mass 35. ... Hot metal work from a blacksmith In chemistry, a metal (Greek: Metallon) is an element that readily forms positive ions (cations) and has metallic bonds. ... Together with the metals and metalloids, a nonmetal is one of three categories of chemical elements as distinguished by ionization and bonding properties. ... Electron atomic and molecular orbitals In atomic physics and quantum chemistry, the electron configuration is the arrangement of electrons in an atom, molecule or other body. ... For the musical band, see Noble Gas (band) The noble gases are the chemical elements in group 18 (old-style Group 0) of the periodic table. ... An anion is an ion with negative charge. ... In physics, the electrostatic force is the force arising between static (that is, non-moving) electric charges. ... Snapshot from a simulation of liquid water. ... Covalently bonded hydrogen and carbon in a molecule of methane. ...

Ionic bonding occurs only if the overall energy change for the reaction is favourable when the bonded atoms have a lower energy than the free ones. The larger the resulting energy change the stronger the bond.

Pure ionic bonding is not known to exist. All ionic bonds have a degree of covalent bonding or metallic bonding. The larger the difference in electronegativity between two atoms the more ionic the bond. Ionic compounds conduct electricity when molten or in solution. They generally have a high melting point and tend to be soluble in water. Covalently bonded hydrogen and carbon in a molecule of methane. ... Metallic bonds are found in metals like copper. ... Electronegativity is a measure of the ability of an atom or molecule to attract electrons in the context of a chemical bond. ... Lightning strikes during a night-time thunderstorm. ... The melting point of a solid is the temperature at which it changes state from solid to liquid. ...

Impression of two ions, for example Na⁺ and Cl^- forming an ionic bond. The electron orbitals generally do not overlap (i.e., molecular orbitals are not formed), because each of the ions reached the lowest energy state and the bond is based only (ideally) on the electrostatic interactions between positive and negative ions.

Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Electron atomic and molecular orbitals In atomic physics, an electron orbital (or simply orbital) is the description of the behavior of an electron in an atom or molecule according to quantum mechanics. ... Electron atomic and molecular orbitals In quantum chemistry (electronic structure theory), the molecular electronic states, i. ... An energy level is a quantified stable energy, which a physical system can have; the term is most commonly used in reference to the electron configuration of electrons, in atoms or molecules. ...

Polarization effects

Ions in crystal lattices of purely ionic compounds are spherical, but, if the positive ion is small and/or highly charged, it will distort the electron cloud of the negative ion. This polarization of the negative ion leads to a build-up of extra charge density between the two nuclei, i.e., to partial covalency. Larger negative ions are more easily polarized, but the effect is usually only important when positive ions with charges of 3+ (e.g., Al³⁺) are involved (e.g., pure AlCl₃ is a covalent molecule). However, 2+ ions (Be²⁺) or even 1+ (Li⁺) show some polarizing power because their sizes are so small (e.g., LiI is ionic but has some covalent character). The Polarizing Power depends on the ratio of charge and size of the ion, often called the charge density. An ion is an atom or group of atoms that normally are electrically neutral and achieve their status as an ion by loss (or addition) of an electron. ... In mineralogy and crystallography, a crystal structure is a unique arrangement of atoms in a crystal. ... A sphere (< Greek σφαίρα) is a perfectly symmetrical geometrical object. ... In electrostatics, the polarization is the vector field that results from permanent or induced electric dipole moments in a dielectric material. ... A semi-accurate depiction of the helium atom. ... Electric charge is a fundamental property of some subatomic particles, which determines their electromagnetic interactions. ...

Ionic Structure

Ionic compounds in the solid state form a continuous ionic lattice structure in an ionic crystal. When all the ions are approximately the same size, they can form a structure that is face-centered cubic, but, when the ions are different sizes, the structure is often body-centered cubic. In ionic lattices the coordination number refers to the number of ions that each is connected to. In chemistry, an ionic compound is a chemical compound in which ions are held together in a lattice structure by ionic bonds. ... An ionic crystal is a crystal consisting of ions bound together by their electrostatic attraction. ... In crystallography, the cubic crystal system (or isometric crystal system) is the most symmetric of the 7 crystal systems. ... Close-packing of spheres refers to arranging an infinite lattice of spheres so that they take up the greatest possible fraction of an infinite 3-dimensional space. ... In chemistry, the coordination number is the sum of the total number of neighbors of a central atom in a chemical compound and the number of lone pairs on it. ...

Ionic versus covalent bonds

In an ionic bond, the atoms are bound by attraction of opposite ions, whereas, in a covalent bond, atoms are bound by sharing electrons. In covalent bonding, the molecular geometry around each atom is determined by VSEPR rules, whereas, in ionic materials, the geometry follows maximum packing rules. Thus, a compound can be classified as ionic or covalent based on the geometry of the atoms. Covalently bonded hydrogen and carbon in a molecule of methane. ... Geometry of the water molecule Molecular geometry or molecular structure is the three dimensional arrangement of the atoms that constitute a molecule, inferred from the spectroscopic studies of the compound. ... Geometry of the water molecule Molecules have fixed equilibrium geometries--bond lengths and angles--that are dictated by the laws of quantum mechanics. ... Close-packing of spheres refers to arranging an infinite lattice of spheres so that they take up the greatest possible fraction of an infinite 3-dimensional space. ...

See also

• Chemical bond
• Covalent bond
• Linear combination of atomic orbitals
• Metallic bonding
• Hybridisation
• Hydrogen bond
• Noncovalent bonding
• Disulfide bond

A chemical bond is the physical phenomenon of chemical substances being held together by attraction of atoms to each other through sharing, as well as exchanging, of electrons or electrostatic forces. ... Covalently bonded hydrogen and carbon in a molecule of methane. ... The linear combination of atomic orbitals molecular orbital method (usually called the LCAO MO method) is a technique for calculating molecular orbitals in quantum chemistry. ... Metallic bonding is intramolecular bonding within metals. ... four sp³ orbitals three sp² orbitals In chemistry, hybridisation or hybridization (see spelling differences) is the mixing of atomic orbitals belonging to a same electron shell to form new orbitals suitable for the qualitative description of atomic bonding properties. ... Snapshot from a simulation of liquid water. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... A disulfide bond (SS-bond), also called a disulfide bridge, is a strong covalent bond between two sulfhydryl (-SH) groups. ...

External links

• ionic bonding tutorial I
• ionic bonding tutorial II
• ionic bonding tutorial III