What does silicons position in the periodic table tell you about its properties?
Since Si comes right under carbon it is a part of the carbon family i.e. its properties will be quite similar to carbon… Elemental silicon has the physical properties of metalloids, similar to the ones or germanium, situated under it in the group IV of the periodic table. Metalloid, or semi metal is a term used in chemistry when classifying the chemical elements. On the basis of their general physical and chemical properties, nearly every element in the periodic table can be termed either a metal or a nonmetal. However, a few elements with intermediate properties are referred to as metalloids (from the Greek metallon = “metal” and eidos = “sort”). The line that separates metalloids from nonmetals in the periodic table is referred to as the “amphoteric line”. Both silicon and (in certain aspects) carbon are semiconductors, readily either donating or sharing their four outer electrons allowing many different forms of chemical bonding. Pure silicon has a negative temperature coefficient
