Properties of metals
General physical properties of metals compared with non-metals.
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Learning objectives
What you need to be able to do
Teacher-mapped phrasing — check against the official Cambridge syllabus for exact wording.
- 9.1.1Describe the general physical properties of metals and compare them with non-metals.
5 minute read
Physical properties of metals
Metals share a characteristic set of physical properties, which follow directly from their structure — a lattice of positive ions in a sea of delocalised electrons.
Typical metal properties
- Good conductors of heat and electricity — the delocalised electrons carry both charge and thermal energy freely through the structure.
- Malleable (can be hammered/bent into shape) and ductile (can be drawn into a wire) — layers of ions can slide over each other without breaking the metallic bonding.
- High density and high melting/boiling points — the strong electrostatic attraction throughout the giant lattice needs a great deal of energy to overcome.
- Shiny (lustrous) when freshly cut or polished, as the surface reflects light well.
Comparing with non-metals
Non-metals typically show the opposite pattern: poor conductors of heat and electricity (with graphite as a notable exception), brittle rather than malleable (they shatter rather than bend), generally lower density, and often lower melting points, especially the simple molecular non-metals.
These differences are why metals dominate applications needing strength, conductivity or shaping (wiring, construction, cookware), while non-metals are more often used for insulation or in compound form.
Think of it like this
A metal is like a well-organised team where everyone shares resources freely (delocalised electrons), so energy and information (heat and electricity) pass through the whole group easily, and the team can reorganise its formation (bend and stretch) without falling apart. Many non-metals behave more like isolated individuals — each holding onto their own resources, unable to pass anything along efficiently, and prone to breaking rather than flexing under pressure.
Common misconceptions
- Assuming all non-metals are poor conductors without exception. Graphite, a non-metal, conducts electricity well due to its delocalised electrons — a genuine exception worth remembering.
- Thinking malleable and ductile mean the same thing. Malleable means it can be hammered/bent into shape; ductile specifically means it can be drawn into a wire — they usually go together but describe different tests.
- Believing "shiny" is the same as "good conductor". They are separate properties that happen to often occur together in metals, but one does not cause the other.
In the exam
- When comparing metals and non-metals, state the property for BOTH explicitly (e.g. "metals conduct well; non-metals generally do not") rather than describing only one side.
- Density and melting point questions expect a comparison — "metals tend to have higher density/melting points than non-metals" — rather than an absolute claim, since there are exceptions on both sides.