ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the fundamental aspects of chemical bonding and its correlation with the various properties of materials. The physical, mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties of materials are decided by the nature of the bond, which combines atoms into molecules/crystals. The concept of molecules/crystals can be considered to be originated from the tendency of atoms to attain the inert gas configuration. The simplest approach to understand the bonding forces is to consider two isolated atoms at an infinite distance and study their interaction behavior, while bringing them close. Depending upon the bond strength, the chemical bonds can be categorized into primary and secondary types. In general, the primary bonds are interatomic bonds whereas secondary bonds are intermolecular bonds. Ionic bonds are among the most important electro-static bonds, which are formed due to Coulombic interactions. In ionically bonded solids, the entire crystal can be considered to be made up of cations and anions.
