Question

Potassium crystallises in bcc lattice, the coordination number of potassium in potassium metal is ______.

Options

• 12

• 4

• 6

• 8

Answer 1

Potassium crystallises in bcc lattice, the coordination number of potassium in potassium metal is 8.

Explanation:

Potassium forms a body-centred cubic (bcc) lattice, where each atom is surrounded by 8 nearest neighbours. The atom at the centre of the cube touches the 8 corner atoms, giving potassium metal a coordination number of 8.