Lanthanides
Lanthanide contraction is due to:
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About This Question
- Subject
- chemistry
- Chapter
- d- and f-block elements
- Topic
- lanthanides
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Year
- 2025
Solution
Correct Answer:
Both poor shielding and nuclear charge increase
Lanthanide Contraction is the steady decrease in the size of atoms/ions from Lanthanum (Z=57) to Lutetium (Z=71).
- Cause: As we move series, the nuclear charge increases by one unit at each step. The new electron enters the 4f subshell.
- Since 4f electrons have poor shielding power (due to their diffuse shape), the effective nuclear charge increases significantly. This pulls the electron cloud inward, leading to the contraction.
This medium difficulty chemistry question is from the chapter d- and f-block elements, covering the topic of lanthanides. It appeared in the 2025 exam.
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