Metallic bond: definition in chemistry
Metallic bond: The attraction between positively charged metal ions and the sea of delocalized electrons that moves freely among them.
In a metal, each atom releases one or more outer electrons into a shared pool that spreads through the whole solid. Because these electrons can move, metals conduct electricity and heat well. The ions can slide past one another without breaking the bonding, which is why metals can be hammered into sheets (malleable) and drawn into wires (ductile).
Examples
- Copper wire conducting electricity
- Gold hammered into leaf less than a millionth of a meter thick
- Tungsten, with very strong metallic bonding, melts at 3,422 °C
- Mercury, with weak metallic bonding, is a liquid at room temperature
On the periodic table
Metallic bonding is found in all the metals on the left side and center of the table, and it is generally strongest in the middle of the d-block, where many electrons are available.