What is Atomic radius?
{{cleanup|reason=|date=December 2024}} The '''atomic radius''' of an [[Chemical_element|element]] is the distance between the [[Nucleus_(physics)|nucleus]] and the edge of the [[electron cloud]]. The atomic radius is rather hard to define, because it is impossible to know where all of the electrons are at a given time. In the periodic table of the elements, the atomic radius tends to increase as you move down a group because the number of electrons is greater, and so the [[radius]] of the [[circle]] of electrons in the element is bigger. As you move to the right across a period, the atomic radius tends to decrease due to the shielding effect. [[Category:Nuclear physics]]