Lecture Series 2 Basic Chemistry Vocabulary Flashcards
atom
The smallest unit of an element that retains the element’s distinctive properties. Atoms are the building blocks of all matter.
proton
A subatomic particle, it is the positively charged particle found in the nucleus of an atom.
neutron
A subatomic particle, it is an electrically neutral particle found in the nucleus of an atom.
electron
A subatomic particle, it is a negatively charged particle found outside the nucleus of an atom.
atomic number
The number of protons in an atom’s nucleus.
molecule
an association of atoms held together by nuclear bonds
element
a pure substance that has distinctive physical and chemical properties, and cannot be broken down into other substances by ordinary chemical methods.
ion
an atom that has lost or gained electrons and therefore is either negatively or positively charged
isotope
two or more forms of an element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons
chemical reaction
the process of breaking existing chemical bonds and creating new ones
chemical bond
a force that holds two atoms together
ionic bond
the chemical attraction between a negatively charged ion and a positively charged ion
covalent bond
the sharing of electrons between two atoms
polar molecule or dipole
a molecule whose electrical charge is shared unevenly, with some regions being electrically negative and others being electrically positive
hydrogen bonding
the weak electrical attraction between a hydrogen atom with a partial positive charge and a neighboring atom with a partial negative charge
pH scale
a logarithmic scale that indicates the concentration of hydrogen ions. The scale goes from 0-14 with 0 representing an extremely high concentration of free H ions and 14 representing the lowest concentration.