Carbon vs Silicon
Carbon and Silicon sit in the same column of the periodic table — same family, one period apart — so almost every difference between them comes from one thing: the extra electron shell Silicon wears.
Side by side
| Property | Carbon | Silicon |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | C | Si |
| Atomic number (Z) | 6 | 14 |
| Atomic mass | 12.011 u | 28.085 u |
| Category | Nonmetal | Metalloid |
| Group | 14 | 14 |
| Period | 2 | 3 |
| Phase at room temp | solid | solid |
| Electron configuration | [He] 2s^2 2p^2 | [Ne] 3s^2 3p^2 |
| Valence electrons | 4 | 4 |
| Atomic radius | 67 pm | 111 pm |
| Electronegativity | 2.55 | 1.9 |
| First ionisation energy | 1086 kJ/mol | 787 kJ/mol |
The verdicts
- Bigger atom: Silicon — the lower an element sits in its group, the more shells it wears.
- Greedy electron-taker: Carbon — higher electronegativity means it pulls shared electrons harder.
- Heavier: Silicon — compare the atomic masses in the table above.
Want the visual version with bars for radius, electronegativity and ionisation energy? Open the interactive compare tool with this pair already loaded.