Silicon vs Germanium
Silicon and Germanium 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 Germanium wears.
Side by side
| Property | Silicon | Germanium |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Si | Ge |
| Atomic number (Z) | 14 | 32 |
| Atomic mass | 28.085 u | 72.630 u |
| Category | Metalloid | Metalloid |
| Group | 14 | 14 |
| Period | 3 | 4 |
| Phase at room temp | solid | solid |
| Electron configuration | [Ne] 3s^2 3p^2 | [Ar] 3d^10 4s^2 4p^2 |
| Valence electrons | 4 | 4 |
| Atomic radius | 111 pm | 125 pm |
| Electronegativity | 1.9 | 2.01 |
| First ionisation energy | 787 kJ/mol | 762 kJ/mol |
The verdicts
- Bigger atom: Germanium — the lower an element sits in its group, the more shells it wears.
- Greedy electron-taker: Germanium — higher electronegativity means it pulls shared electrons harder.
- Heavier: Germanium — 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.