Coordination Compounds in Chemistry

These flashcards cover key vocabulary related to coordination compounds in inorganic chemistry.

Coordination Compound

A compound consisting of a central metal atom or ion bonded to surrounding ligands.

Ligand

An ion or molecule that binds to a central metal atom to form a coordination complex.

Central Atom/Ion

The atom or ion in a coordination compound to which ligands are bound in a defined geometrical arrangement.

Coordination Number

The number of ligand donor atoms that are directly bonded to the central metal atom in a complex.

Coordination Sphere

The central atom/ion and the ligands attached to it, which are enclosed in square brackets in the formula.

Homoleptic Complex

A coordination compound in which the central metal is bonded to only one kind of donor group.

Heteroleptic Complex

A coordination compound in which the central metal is bonded to more than one kind of donor group.

Isomerism

The phenomenon where compounds with the same formula have different arrangements of atoms, resulting in different properties.

Valence Bond Theory

A theory that explains the nature of bonding in coordination complexes through hybridization and the arrangement of electrons.

Crystal Field Theory

A model that describes the electronic structure of coordination compounds considering electrostatic interactions between the metal ion and ligands.

Chelate Ligand

A ligand that can attach to a central metal atom at multiple binding sites, forming a stable ring structure.

Optical Isomerism

A type of isomerism resulting from the presence of chiral molecules that can rotate plane-polarized light.

Geometric Isomerism

Isomerism due to different arrangements of ligands around a central metal ion.

Denticity

The number of donor atoms in a ligand that can bind to the central metal ion.

Primary Valence

The number of ionizable groups associated with a metal ion, usually satisfied by negative ions.

Secondary Valence

The number of groups bonded directly to the metal ion, satisfied by neutral molecules or anions.

Counter Ion

An ion that balances the charge of a coordination entity, which is not included in the coordination sphere.

Spectrochemical Series

A list of ligands ordered by their ability to split d orbital energies in transition metal complexes.