The ions formed have a full outer electron shell, so are very stable. See the study guide on groups in the periodic table for more information.

This is the second part of a three-part series written by Carolyn Krause. Many of the elements were synthesized using an Oak Ridge reactor.

Heavy ligands such as polyoxometalates are opening a new frontier in actinide chemistry. Studying materials that are both ...

"Traditional understanding of the periodic table suggests that berkelium would behave like the lanthanide terbium," said Minasian. "But the berkelium ion is much happier in the +4 oxidation state ...

An electron is transferred from sodium to chlorine. Sodium becomes a positive ion and chlorine becomes a negative ion. The positive and negative ions attract each other and form the ionic compound ...