valence electrons

Cultural  

1. In chemistry, those electrons found in orbits farthest from the nucleus of the atom. These electrons determine the way in which the atom will combine with other atoms, and thus determine its chemical properties.

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Example Sentences

At the center of the discovery is a carbene, a form of carbon with just six valence electrons.

From Science Daily • Apr. 11, 2026

Some of these defects, including the NV center, can host what are known as electronic spins, which originate from the valence electrons around the site of the defect.

From Science Daily • Feb. 8, 2024

The additional valence electrons around the metal atoms then reorganized to bridge these openings, forming new bonds between neighboring metal atoms.

From Science Daily • Oct. 19, 2023

When atomic orbitals hybridize, the valence electrons occupy the newly created orbitals.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

Thus, the charge of a cation formed by the loss of all valence electrons is equal to the group number minus 10.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019