JCE Online Journal of Chemical Education
 | Subscriptions  | Software Orders  | Support  | Contributors  | Advertisers  | 

JCE Print
   Current Issue
 Previous Issues
 Supplements
 Search JCE Index

JCE Digital Library
   DigiDemos
 QBank
 SymMath
 WebWare

JCE Software
   Latest Releases
 Software & Video
 Downloads
 Support

Only@JCE Online
   JCE Online Store
 JCE HS CLIC
 JCE Discussion Forums
   Biographical Snapshots
 ChemEd Resource Shelf
 Featured Molecules
 Hal's Picks
 Project Chemlab
 Reviewed WWW Sites
 "Web-Ed" Articles

About JCE
   Features
 Publications
 Operations
 Outreach
 Contact Us


  Home > JCE Print > Journal of Chemical Education > Issues > 1999  > October  >
Chemical Education Today
Commentary
In Defense of the Metallic Bond
John J. Gilman
Materials Science and Engineering, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095
Cover
October 1999
Vol. 76 No. 10
p. 1330
Abstract
This paper is a rebuttal of the suggestion that the term "metallic bond" be stricken from the chemist's lexicon. The argument of the critics of current usage is that the metallic bond is simply a special case of the covalent bond and that it can be discussed adequately in terms of molecular orbital theory. They define a "metal" as a substance with high electronic conductivity. The rebuttal points out that the historical definition of a metal has (for millennia) been in terms of the ductility of a substance - a property not possessed by "organic" and "ceramic" electronic conductors. This complex and unique property is supported by the characteristics of the metallic bond. In particular, it requires a sufficiently high concentration of nearly free electrons to form a Fermi liquid because ductility requires the bonding to be as nondirectional as possible. This is the antithesis of covalent bonding, as in diamond, for example.
More Information
*  Citation
 Gilman, John J. J. Chem. Educ. 1999 76 1330.
*  Keywords
 Inorganic Chemistry; Physical Chemistry; Bonding Theory; Materials Science; Metals; Solid-State Chemistry
*  History
 Created:
Last Updated:		 September 6, 1999
June 23, 2005
<< Previous Article Table of Contents Next Article >>
  Home > JCE Print > Journal of Chemical Education > Issues > 1999 > October > Page 1330


Subscriptions
 Subscription Info
 Order Forms

JCE HS CLIC

Our Secondary School editors work hard to distill all the JCE materials to produce a fraction of particular interest to high school teachers. We call it CLIC.
 JCE HS CLIC

Contributions Welcome
JCE welcomes your submission
 Contributors' Corner

Advertisers
In recent years we have worked hard to better match our advertisers with our readers. When shopping for chemistry education materials, visit our advertisers' WWW sites first.
 Recent Advertisers

Be An Ambassador
Take JCE along on your outreach missions. Copies of the Journal, guest access to JCE Online, our publications catalog, and more are available for your participants.
 Outreach with JCE

Comments to
jceonline@chem.wisc.edu		 Copyright © Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society.
All rights reserved.