Concept:Ionic radius is the distance from the nucleus to the outermost electron of an ion.
Explanation:The nuclear charge is the number of protons in the nucleus, often denoted as
Z.
When the nuclear charge increases, the positive charge of the nucleus becomes stronger.
This stronger positive charge attracts the surrounding electrons more powerfully.
As a result, the electron cloud is pulled closer to the nucleus.
Thus, the distance from the nucleus to the outermost electron decreases.
This means the ionic radius becomes smaller.
Therefore, ionic radius shows an inverse relationship with nuclear charge.
In isoelectronic ions and along a period, this trend is clearly observed.
Answer:B. decreases as nuclear charge increases