ATOMIC STRUCTURE AND INTER-

ATOMIC BONDING

MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CLASS 1 OSADOLOR O

ALEX
 OUTLINE
• INTRODUCTION
• ATOMIC STRUCTURE
• ELECTRONIC CONFIGURATION
• PERIODIC TABLE
• TYPES OF INTER-ATOMIC BONDS
– PRIMARY BONDING
– SECONDARY BONDING
 INTRODUCTION
• All available materials are made up of atoms. And
atoms of the same element are similar in every
property. The size of an atom is in the order of 1 Ǻ
• Materials which consists of one type atom is an
element
• Group of atoms which tends to exist together in a
stable form is called a molecule
• The most important properties of solid materials
depend on the geometrical atomic arrangement, as
well as interactions that exist among constituent
atoms
 ATOMIC STRUCTURE
• Atoms consists of a nucleus (protons and neutrons),
surrounded by moving electrons. The magnitude of a
charge is 1.6X10-19C. Proton and neutron mass is
approximately 1.67X10-27Kg, while that of an electron
is 9.11X10-31Kg. Each element has a unique atomic
number, which is equal to the number of electrons
for a complete atom. Mass number is the sum of the
atomic number and the number of neutrons.
• Read about Isotopes, Atomic weight and AMU
 ATOMIC STRUCTURE(Cntd)
• ATOMIC NUCLEUS: Rutherford showed in
1911 that most of the mass of an atom
resides in its nucleus. The nuclear radius
represents the distance from the centre
of the nucleus at which an external
uncharged nucleon first feels its
influence, it lies within 1.0-14m to 10-15m.
 ATOMIC MODELS
• BOHR ATOMIC MODEL: Electrons were
assumed to revolve around the atomic nucleus
in discrete orbits. Thus, the position of any
particular electron is well defined in terms of
its orbital

Fig 1: Bohr atomic model

Also, by quantum mechanics rule, the energies of electrons are
quantized (have specific value of energy). This energy value can be
determined using the angular momentum
L = nh/2π eqn(1)
n = principal quantum number
• The orbital radius is given as
r = Ken2h2/(mZe2) or 4πεon2h2/(mZe2) eqn(2)
Ke = 4πεo (Columbus constant) and εo is permittivity of a vacuum
•The orbital Velocity(electron velocity) is given as
ѵ = Ze2/(2εonh) eqn(3)
•The orbital frequency is given by
V = mZ2e4/(4εo2n3h3) eqn(4)
•Energy of the electron( Kinetic Ek and Potential Ep)
Ek = ½ mv2= Ze2/(8πεor) = mZ2e4/(8εon2h2) eqn(5)
Ep = -eV = -Ze2/(4 πεor) eqn(6)
Total Energy = Ek + Ep = -Ze2/(8πεor) eqn(9)
ET = -13.6Z2eV/n2 (after substituting constants, 1eV = 1.6X10-19 )
 ATOMIC MODELS (Cntd)
• LIMITATIONS OF BOHR’S THEORY OF THE HYDROGEN ATOM:
1. The model assumed circular orbits without considering eliptical orbits
2. This model of the atom cannot be generalized to deal with complex
atoms.
3. This model gives no information regarding the arrangement or
distribution of electrons in the atom
4. The model is unable to handle unbounded systems.
5. The model deals with planetary model which introduces only one
quantum number, ie principal quantum number n.
6. The model provides no explanation as to while certain spectral lines
are more intense than others.
7. The model fails to explain the wave nature of electrons.
8. The model fails to explain the structure lines observed for hydrogen
9. The model fails to explain interactions among individual atoms
10.The model does not provide any explanation for chemical bonding
 ATOMIC MODELS (Cntd)

• WAVE-MECHANICAL MODEL: It resolves

that the electron exhibits both wavelike
and particle like characteristics. An
electron’s position is described by a
probability distribution density or an
electron cloud
 QUANTUM NUMBERS
• According to quantum mechanics, every electron in
an atom is characterized by four parameters called
quantum numbers. The size, shape, and spatial
orientation of an electron cloud is specified by three
of these quantum numbers.
1. Shells are specified by principal quantum number n,
(NB, principal quantum numbers are associated with
the Bohr model). This quantum number is related to
the distance from the nucleus or its position
 QUANTUM NUMBERS (cntd)
2. The second quantum number, l, signifies the sub-
shell. This related to the shape of the electron sub-
shell
3. The third quantum number, ml, determines the
number of energy states for each sub-shell. In the
absence of an external magnetic field, the states
within each sub-shell are identical.
4. The fourth quantum number, ms, shows the
direction of spin which an electron would spin
towards, when a magnetic field is applied
TABLE1: ELECTRONIC CONFIGURATION OF SOME ELEMENTS
 ATOMIC MODELS (cntd)
• PAULI EXCLUSION PRINCIPLE: It states that no two
electrons can have the same value for all four
quantum numbers(quantum state). For a given
value of n, there must be n sub-shells. For each
value of l, there are 2l +1 permitted value of ml,
hence each shell can accommodate 2 (2l+1)
electrons. The total number of electrons that can
be accommodated in a shell with principal
quantum number n, is 2n2, when all electrons
occupy the lowest possible state
 PERIODIC TABLE
• Mandeleev in 1869 discovered that if elements are arranged
in the order of increasing atomic weights, similar properties
occurs at regular intervals. However, Moseley in 1913
discovered that the properties of elements are a periodic
function of their atomic numbers. Thus Moseley proposed a
periodic table in which the elements were arranged in
increasing order of atomic number. This table has seven rows
called periods and 18 vertical columns called groups.
However, the modern periodic table was developed by Bohr,
in which elements are classified according to their electronic
configuration. Elements in the same group have similar
valence electrons , as well as chemical properties
 INTER-ATOMIC BONDS
•As previously stated, the inter-atomic forces that
binds atoms together determines the physical
properties of the material. Considering two atoms
coming together, there is the force of attraction (F A)
or repulsion (FR) at work, and the magnitude of each
of these forces is a function of their inter-atomic
distances.
•The attractive force decreases the potential energy
of the system while the repulsive force increases it.
When FA = FR, the two atoms will be in a stable
situation with minimum potential energy
 INTER-ATOMIC BONDS (Cntd)
•When two atoms are infinitely apart their potential
energy is zero.

•Potential energy due to attraction is negative, while

that due to repulsion is positive

•Bond energy is the decrease in energy when atoms

separated by infinite distance are brought together at
equilibrium distance. The dissociation energy is the
negative of the bond energy
INTER-ATOMIC BONDS (Basic eqns)
E = Eattraction + Erepulsion eqn(1)
E = -A/rm + B/rn (n>m) eqn(1b)
• Net total force
F = -mA/rm+1 + nB/rn+1 eqn(2)
At equilibrium distance, F(r) = 0, r = ro
therefore ron-m = (B/A)x(n/m) eqn(3)
• The energy at equilibrium distance
Eo = -A/rom + B/ron = -A/rom (1 – m/n) eqn(4)
Since m ≠n, Eo ≠ 0, although the attractive force is equal to the
repulsive force at equilibrium distance, the attractive energy is not
equal to the repulsive energy
Fig 2: Inter-atomic forces versus distance
 PRIMARY BONDING

These are inter-atomic bonds in which

electrostatic force holds the atoms together.
Large atomic forces develops in these bonds,
making them more stable and imparting high
strength. The types are
• IONIC OR ELECTROSTATIC BONDS
• COVALENT ATOMIC OR HOMOPOLER BONDS
• METALIC BONDS
 IONIC BONDING
(hetero-polar bonding)
It is formed by actual transfer of electrons
from one atom to another so that each atom
obtains a stable configuration similar to the
nearest inert gas atom. It occurs between
electro-positive and electro-negative elements
and results mainly in inorganic compounds.
The criterion for ionic bonding is the
differences in electronegativity
 COVALENT BONDING

• This bond is formed by sharing of electrons

between two neighboring atoms, each having
incomplete outermost shells. This enables
them have stable electronic configuration.
Electron sharing is effective if the shared
electrons have opposite spins. There is no
charge associated with any crystal formed by
this type of bond
 COVALENT BONDING 2
• Since participating atoms in the bond have the same
valence state, this bond is also called valence bond.
Covalent bond is directional. The number of covalent
bonds possible for an atom is determined by the number
of valence electrons of the atom
• It is possible to have inter-atomic bonds that are partially
ionic and partially covalent. The degree of each bond
type depends on the relative positions of the constituent
atoms in the periodic table or in the difference in
electrongativity.
% ionic character = {1-exp(-0.25(XA-XB)2)} x 100 eqn(5)
 METALLIC BONDING
• This is found in metals and their alloys. The
valence electrons in this bond are not bound to
any particular atom in the solid, thus they drift
throughout the metal forming an electron cloud.
The remaining non-valence electrons and atomic
nuclei forms the ion cores, which posses a net
positive charge equal in magnitude to the total
valence electron charge per atom. Thus, metallic
bond is non directional in character, while the
electron cloud glues the ion cores together
 SECONDARY BONDING
• They are molecular bonds that are relatively
weak in comparison with the primary bonds.
They are formed in elements or compounds
whose electronic configuration is such that
very little electron transfer takes place
between them. They may result from
electrostatic attraction of dipoles. Dipoles
could either be induced or polar
 SECONDARY BONDING 2

• They may also be formed as a result of weak

Vander Waals forces. Vander Waal forces are
attributable to the electrostatic attraction
between the nucleus of an atom and the
electrons of another atom.
• Hydrogen bond is also a type of secondary
bond. However, hydrogen bond is directional