Answer to Question #190978 in General Chemistry for hodan issa

Question

What is the general trend in the size of atomic radii as the atomic number increases within a group?

Answer 1

Down a group, the number of energy levels (n) increases, so there is a greater distance between the nucleus and the outermost orbital. This results in a larger atomic radius. Ionic radius is the distance from the nucleus to the outer edge of the electron cloud of an ion