Why does diamond cut glass while graphite rubs off on your finger? Why does salt melt at 800°C when oxygen is a gas? In every case the answer comes down to the type of bonding between the particles and the structure that bonding creates. Once you can link a structure to its properties, you can reason your way through melting points, conductivity, strength and solubility for almost any substance an exam puts in front of you.
🧭 How this topic splits by tier
Most of C2 is for everyone — only a few parts are tier-specific:
- Everyone — states of matter; ionic bonding and giant ionic lattices; covalent bonding (simple molecules and giant covalent structures); metallic bonding and alloys; polymers; carbon allotropes; and how structure and bonding explain conductivity, melting point and solubility.
- Higher Tier H — limitations of the simple particle model (Section 1) and half equations for ion formation.
- Triple (Chemistry only) T — nanoparticles (Section 12).
States of Matter
Does It Conduct Electricity?
Nanoparticles
T
Capstone
Bringing It Together