What Is an Ionic Bond?
1. Ions
In order to answer this question, it first helps to understand what an ion is. In short, an ion is a molecule or atom that has a net electrical charge. Atoms are made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons. A neutron has no electrical charge, a proton has a positive electrical charge, and an electron has a negative electrical charge. Many atoms will have no charge because the numbers of protons and electrons cancel each other out. An ion, however, will not have the same number of protons as electrons, and this leaves the atom with a positive or negative charge overall.
