Explain the relationship between atomic radius and Zeff. Provide rationale for your response using data from the table and from the graph that you created.

Question

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Answer 1

Atomic radius and effective nuclear charge (Zeff) are inversely related. As the atomic radius decreases, Zeff generally increases.

This relationship can be explained by looking at the trends in the table and the graph. As you move across a period from left to right, the atomic radius tends to decrease while the effective nuclear charge tends to increase. This is because as you move across a period, the number of protons in the nucleus increases, leading to a higher effective nuclear charge pulling the electrons closer to the nucleus, resulting in a smaller atomic radius.

From the graph, we can see a clear inverse relationship between atomic radius and Zeff. As Zeff increases, atomic radius decreases. This supports the idea that as the effective nuclear charge increases, it pulls the electrons closer to the nucleus, resulting in a smaller atomic radius.

Overall, the data from the table and the graph support the notion that there is an inverse relationship between atomic radius and effective nuclear charge.