Exam 2 Study Guide: Atoms, Light, and Chemical Bonds

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering fundamental chemistry concepts from Chapters 3, 4, 5, and Labs 3-6 for Exam 2 preparation.

Law of Conservation of Mass

The scientific law stating that matter can neither be created nor destroyed.

Protons

Subatomic particles located in the nucleus with a positive charge of $+1$.

Neutrons

Subatomic particles located in the nucleus with a neutral charge.

Electrons

Subatomic particles with a negative charge of $-1$ that occupy certain regions around the nucleus with high probability.

Atomic Number

A number indicating the quantity of protons in an atom of a specific element, which determines the arrangement of elements in the periodic table.

Mass Number

The total number of protons and neutrons in an atom.

Anions

Atoms that possess more electrons than protons and carry a negative charge.

Cations

Atoms that possess more protons than electrons and carry a positive charge.

Wave Energy Equations

The conceptual equations relating wave energy ($E$) to frequency ($\nu$) and wavelength ($\lambda$), defined as $E = h\nu$ and $E = \frac{hc}{\lambda}$.

s Sublevel

An orbital subshell that consists of $1$ orbital and can hold a maximum of $2$ electrons.

p Sublevel

An orbital subshell that consists of $3$ orbitals and can hold a maximum of $6$ electrons.

d Sublevel

An orbital subshell that consists of $5$ orbitals and can hold a maximum of $10$ electrons.

f Sublevel

An orbital subshell that consists of $7$ orbitals and can hold a maximum of $14$ electrons.

Periodic Table Row Number

The structural indicator on the periodic table that signifies the principal energy level being filled.

Valence Electrons (Main Group)

Electrons whose total number in main group elements is directly indicated by the Group A Roman numeral.

Diatomic Molecules (Natural)

The $7$ elements found naturally as two-atom molecules: hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine.

Ionic Bond

A bond formed by a transfer of electrons resulting in two charged atoms that are electrostatically attracted to one another.

Covalent Bond

A bond formed by a sharing of electrons between atoms so that the atoms involved can complete their octets.

Ionic Compound

A chemical compound typically consisting of metal and nonmetal elements, which may contain monoatomic or polyatomic ions.

Covalent Compound

A chemical compound that usually consists exclusively of nonmetal elements bonded by electron sharing.

Water Displacement

A laboratory technique used to determine the volume of an irregular solid by measuring the volume of water it displaces.

Filtration and Evaporation

Laboratory physical separation techniques used to separate the components of a mixture.