Atomic Trends

Atomic and Ionic Radii: Half the distance between the nuclei of two identically bonded atoms. Measure of the size of an atom. Group/Family Trend: Atomic radii increase as you go down a group of elements. This occurs because: Shielding increases Adding energy levels Period Trend: Atomic radii decrease across a period (as atomic number increases). This occurs because: Nuclear charge increases No change in shielding effect across a period Ionization Energy: Energy required to remove an electron from an atom. Measured in kilojoules per mole (kJ/mol) Group/Family Trend: Ionization energy decreases down a group. This occurs because: Atoms are getting larger Shielding effect increases Period Trend: Ionization energy increases across a period (as atomic # increases). This occurs because: Atoms are getting smaller Nuclear charge increases * Multiple ionization energies: It requires more energy to remove successive electrons from an atom. This is due to the effective nuclear charge increasing as each electron is removed. Also because it causes atoms to decrease in size. The largest jump in ionization energy occurs when all valence electrons are removed and a stable configuration is reached (noble gas notation). Electron Affinity: Energy released when an electron is captured by a neutral element. Measured in kJ/mol. Group/Family Trend: Electron affinities decrease as you go down a group because: Shielding effect increases Atoms are getting larger Period Trend: Electron affinity increases across a period because: Atoms are getting smaller Nuclear charge increases Electronegativity: Measures the ability of atoms in bonds to attract electrons. No unit, it is a comparative value. Fluorine arbitrarily given a value of 4.0, which is the highest electronegativity. Group/Family Trend: Electronegativity decreases down a group because: Shielding effect increases

Atoms are getting larger

Period Trend: Electronegativity increases across a period because Atoms are getting smaller Nuclear charge increases