ion

Ion:

see CreusaCreusa
, in Greek mythology. 1 Daughter of Erechtheus and wife of Xuthus. Her sons, Achaeus by Xuthus, and Ion by Xuthus or Apollo, are the ancestors of the Achaeans and the Ionians. 2 Princess of Corinth: see Jason and Medea.
..... Click the link for more information. (1.)

ion,

atom or group of atoms having a net electric chargecharge,
property of matter that gives rise to all electrical phenomena (see electricity). The basic unit of charge, usually denoted by e, is that on the proton or the electron; that on the proton is designated as positive (+e
..... Click the link for more information. .

Positive and Negative Electric Charges

A neutral atom or group of atoms becomes an ion by gaining or losing one or more electrons or protons. Since the electron and proton have equal but opposite unit charges, the charge of an ion is always expressed as a whole number of unit charges and is either positive or negative. A simple ion consists of only one charged atom; a complex ioncomplex ion,
charged molecular aggregate (see ion), consisting of a metallic atom or ion to which is attached one or more electron-donating molecules. In some complex ions, such as sulfate, SO₄⁻²
..... Click the link for more information. consists of an aggregate of atoms with a net charge. If an atom or group loses electrons or gains protons, it will have a net positive charge and is called a cationcation
, atom or group of atoms carrying a positive charge. The charge results because there are more protons than electrons in the cation. Cations can be formed from a metal by oxidation (see oxidation and reduction), from a neutral base (see acids and bases) by protonation, or
..... Click the link for more information. . If an atom or group gains electrons or loses protons, it will have a net negative charge and is called an anionanion
, atom or group of atoms carrying a negative charge. The charge results because there are more electrons than protons in the anion. Anions can be formed from nonmetals by reduction (see oxidation and reduction) or from neutral acids (see acids and bases) or polar compounds
..... Click the link for more information. .

Since ordinary matter is electrically neutral, ions normally exist as groups of cations and anions such that the sum total of positive and negative charges is zero. In common table salt, or sodium chloride, NaCl, the sodium cations, Na⁺, are neutralized by chlorine anions, Cl⁻. In the salt sodium carbonate, Na₂CO₃, two sodium cations are needed to neutralize each carbonate anion, CO₃⁻², because its charge is twice that of the sodium ion.

Ionization of Neutral Atoms

Ionization of neutral atoms can occur in several different ways. Compounds such as salts dissociate in solutionsolution,
in chemistry, homogeneous mixture of two or more substances. The dissolving medium is called the solvent, and the dissolved material is called the solute. A solution is distinct from a colloid or a suspension.
..... Click the link for more information. into their ions, e.g., in solution sodium chloride exists as free Na⁺ and Cl⁻ ions. Compounds that contain dissociable protons, or hydrogen ions, H⁺, or basic ions such as hydroxide ion, OH⁻, make acidic or basic solutions when they dissociate in water (see acids and basesacids and bases,
two related classes of chemicals; the members of each class have a number of common properties when dissolved in a solvent, usually water. Properties
..... Click the link for more information. ; dissociationdissociation,
in chemistry, separation of a substance into atoms or ions. Thermal dissociation occurs at high temperatures. For example, hydrogen molecules (H₂
..... Click the link for more information. ). Substances that ionize in solution are called electrolyteselectrolyte
, electrical conductor in which current is carried by ions rather than by free electrons (as in a metal). Electrolytes include water solutions of acids, bases, or salts; certain pure liquids; and molten salts.
..... Click the link for more information. ; those that do not ionize, like sugar and alcohol, are called nonelectrolytes. Ions in solution conduct electricity. If a positive electrode, or anode, and a negative electrode, or cathode, are inserted into such a solution, the ions are attracted to the electrode of opposite charge, and simultaneous currents of ions arise in opposite directions to one another. Nonelectrolytes do not conduct electricity.

Ionization can also be caused by the bombardment of matter with high-speed particles or other radiationradiation
, term applied to the emission and transmission of energy through space or through a material medium and also to the radiated energy itself. In its widest sense the term includes electromagnetic, acoustic, and particle radiation, and all forms of ionizing radiation.
..... Click the link for more information. . Ultraviolet radiationultraviolet radiation,
invisible electromagnetic radiation between visible violet light and X rays; it ranges in wavelength from about 400 to 4 nanometers and in frequency from about 10¹⁵ to 10¹⁷ hertz.
..... Click the link for more information. and low-energy X raysX ray,
invisible, highly penetrating electromagnetic radiation of much shorter wavelength (higher frequency) than visible light. The wavelength range for X rays is from about 10⁻⁸ m to about 10⁻¹¹
..... Click the link for more information. excite molecules in the upper atmosphere sufficiently to cause them to lose electrons and become ionized, giving rise to several different layers of ions in the earth's atmosphere (see ionosphereionosphere
, series of concentric ionized layers forming part of the upper atmosphere of the earth from around 30 to 50 mi (50 to 80 km) to 250 to 370 mi (400 to 600 km) where it merges with the magnetosphere, the region of the Van Allen radiation belts.
..... Click the link for more information. ). A gas can be ionized by passing an electron current through it; the ionized gas then permits the passage of a much higher current. Heating to high temperatures also ionizes substances; certain salts yield ions in their melts as they do in solution.

Applications of Ionization

Ionization has many applications. Vapor lamps and fluorescent lamps take advantage of the light given off when positive ions recombine with electrons. Because of their electric charge the movement of ions can be controlled by electrostatic and magnetic fields. Particle acceleratorsparticle accelerator,
apparatus used in nuclear physics to produce beams of energetic charged particles and to direct them against various targets. Such machines, popularly called atom smashers, are needed to observe objects as small as the atomic nucleus in studies of its
..... Click the link for more information. , or atom smashers, use both fields to accelerate and aim electrons and hydrogen and helium ions. The mass spectrometer utilizes ionization to determine molecular weights and structures. High-energy electrons are used to ionize a molecule and break it up into fragment ions. The ratio of mass to charge for each fragment is determined by its behavior in electric and magnetic fields. The ratio of mass to charge of the parent ion gives the molecular weight directly, and the fragmentation pattern gives clues to the molecular structures.

In ion-exchange reactions a specially prepared insoluble resin with attached dissociable ions is packed into a column. When a solution is passed through the column, ions from the solution are exchanged with ions on the resin (see chromatographychromatography
, resolution of a chemical mixture into its component compounds by passing it through a system that retards each compound to a varying degree; a system capable of accomplishing this is called a chromatograph.
..... Click the link for more information. ). Water softeners use the mineral zeolite, a natural ion-exchange resin; sodium ions from the zeolite are exchanged for metal ions from the insoluble salt that makes the water hard, converting it to a soluble salt. Ion-permeable membranes allow some ions to pass through more readily than others; some membranes of the human nervous system are selectively permeable to the ions sodium and potassium.

Engineers have developed experimental ion propulsion engines that propel rockets by ejecting high-speed ions; most other rocket engines eject combustion products. Although an ion engine does not develop enough thrust to launch a rocket into earth orbit, it is considered practical for propelling one through interplanetary space on long-distance trips, e.g., between the earth and Jupiter. If left running for long periods of time on such a trip, the ion engine would gradually accelerate the rocket to immense speeds.

ion

(ÿ -on, -ŏn) An atom or molecule that has lost or gained one or more electrons, thus having a positive or negative charge.

ion

[′ī‚än] (chemistry) An isolated electron or positron or an atom or molecule which by loss or gain of one or more electrons has acquired a net electric charge.

ion

an electrically charged atom or group of atoms formed by the loss or gain of one or more electrons

ion

(1) (IDL On the Net) See IDL.

(2) (ION) An NVIDIA graphics platform typically used in Atom-based netbooks. See Intel Atom.

(3) An ion is an atom with fewer or greater electrons than normal as a result of radiation or chemical reaction. A positive ion, called a "cation" (pronounced "cat-eye-en"), has one or more electrons stripped out, which means it has fewer electrons in its electron shells than it has protons in its nucleus. A negative ion, called an "anion" (pronounced "an-eye-en"), is an atom that has one or more electrons forcibly added.

Cations, Anions, Cathodes and Anodes
Although one might think cations are in cathodes and anions are in anodes, the opposite is true. When the terms were coined, the concept was that positive cations were attracted to the negative cathode, and negative anions were attracted to the positive anode.

Batteries Contain Positive and Negative Ions
In a battery, there are positive ions on one side and negative ions on the other. When a conductor is placed in between to complete the circuit, the electrons flow from the negative ions to the positive side where they join the positive ions. See ion deposition.

ion

[i´on] an atom or group of atoms having a positive (cation) or negative (anion) electric charge by virtue of having gained or lost an electron; substances forming ions are called electrolytes. adj., adj ion´ic.dipolar ion an ion that has both positive and negative regions of charge.hydrogen ion the positively charged hydrogen" >hydrogen atom (H⁺), which is the positive ion of all acids" >acids. See also hydrogen ion concentration.hydroxyl ion the negatively charged group, OH⁻, present to excess in alkaline solutions.

i·on

(ī'on), An atom or group of atoms carrying an electric charge by virtue of having gained or lost one or more electrons. Ions charged with negative electricity (anions) travel toward a positive pole (anode); those charged with positive electricity (cations) travel toward a negative pole (cathode). Ions may exist in solid, liquid, or gaseous environments, although those in liquid (electrolytes) are more common and familiar. [G. iōn, going]

i·on

(ī'on) An atom or group of atoms carrying an electric charge by virtue of having gained or lost one or more electrons. Ions charged with negative electricity (anions) travel toward a positive pole (anode); those charged with positive electricity (cations) travel toward a negative pole (cathode). Ions may exist in solid, liquid, or gaseous environments, although those in liquid (electrolytes) are more common and familiar. [G. iōn, going]

ion

An electrically charged atom, group of atoms, or molecule. A positive ion is an atom that has lost an electron; a negatively charged ion is one that has gained an electron. See also IONIZATION.

ion

an atom that carries a charge due to loss or gain of electrons.

Ion

An atom or group of atoms that acquires an electrical charge by the gain or loss of electrons.Mentioned in: Electrolyte Supplements

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Positive and Negative Electric Charges

Ionization of Neutral Atoms

Applications of Ionization

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Words related to ion

noun a particle that is electrically charged (positive or negative)

Related Words