General Chemistry • Chemical Bonds
Build Lewis dot diagrams for common main-group atoms and simple ions, track how charge changes the valence-electron count, and compare the neutral atom with the selected species in an interactive visual format.
| # | Species | Neutral valence | Charge | Species valence | Rule |
|---|
Click a row to inspect that species in the diagrams and the step-by-step explanation.
A Lewis dot diagram shows only the valence electrons as dots around the element symbol. It helps visualize how many outer-shell electrons are available for bonding or have been gained or lost in a simple ion.
It starts with the neutral-atom valence electrons and then accounts for charge by subtracting the charge value. In plain terms: valence electrons(ion) = valence electrons(neutral) - q, where q is the ionic charge.
The tool draws Lewis diagrams only when the resulting valence electron count is between 0 and 8. If the charge makes the valence electron total fall outside that range, a dot diagram is not produced.
Dots are distributed on four sides of the symbol (top, right, bottom, left). Electrons are placed one per side first, and only then are pairs formed, with at most two electrons per side.
This tool is designed for atoms and simple ions of common main-group elements. More complex cases such as transition-metal valence counting or polyatomic-ion structures require different rules and usually a full Lewis structure method.