Basic Chemistry and Chemical Bonding Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards covering fundamental chemistry terms, subatomic particles, atomic properties, electronegativity, and chemical bonds based on the lecture notes.

Element

A substance that cannot be broken down to other substances by chemical reactions and serves as the building block of life in pure form or compound.

Matter

Anything that has mass and takes up space.

Compound

A combination of two or more different elements.

Molecule

Attached elements formed through chemical bonding between atoms.

Atom

The smallest unit of an element that retains all its characteristics.

Protons

Positively charged subatomic particles with a mass of $1\,\text{Dalton}$, located in the nucleus, which define the element and atomic number.

Electrons

Negatively charged subatomic particles with a mass of $\frac{1}{2000}\,\text{Dalton}$ (considered to have no mass) zooming around the electron shell that define chemical reaction or behavior.

Neutrons

Subatomic particles with a mass of $1\,\text{Dalton}$ found in the nucleus that determine the isotope of an element.

Isotope

Forms of an element in which only the number of neutrons changes, such as Carbon-12 or Carbon-14.

Trace Elements

Elements required in very small amounts that are important for survival, such as Boron, Zinc, and Copper.

Mass Number

The total number of protons plus the number of neutrons in an atom.

Atomic Mass

The average mass of all isotopes of an element based on their relative abundance.

Valence Electrons

Electrons in the outermost shell (valence shell) that define chemical behavior.

Inert Elements

Elements with a full valence shell, such as noble gases, that do not react easily.

Electronegativity

A measure of how much or how little an atom holds onto electrons.

Nonpolar Covalent Bond

A covalent bond where atoms share electrons equally, with an electronegativity difference less than $0.4$.

Polar Covalent Bond

A covalent bond where one atom is more electronegative than the other, with an electronegativity difference between $0.4$ and $1.8$.

Ionic Bond

An attraction between an anion and a cation where one atom steals electrons (becoming more negatively charged) and one atom gives electrons (becoming more positively charged).

Anion

A negative ion.

Cation

A positive ion.

Orbital

The three-dimensional space where an electron is found $90\%$ of the time.

Covalent Bond

A bond formed when two atoms share electrons (such as bringing $1$ electron each) to fill out their valence shell.

Double Covalent Bond

A bond formed when two atoms bring $2$ electrons each to form a bond.

Hydrogen Bond

A bond formed when a hydrogen atom interacts with a highly electronegative atom (like nitrogen, oxygen, or fluorine) in another molecule.