Exploring Chemical Bonds

An ionic bond is formed when one atom completely transfers one or more electrons to another, resulting in oppositely charged ions, like in sodium chloride (NaCl).

In a covalent bond, atoms share electrons, with each atom attracted to the shared electrons; examples include the bonds in proteins and DNA.

Only the outermost electrons participate in bonding; carbon typically forms four bonds, nitrogen forms three, and oxygen forms two, and groups of atoms sharing electrons are called molecules.