How do metals form chemical bonds with other metals?

Answer:Ionic bonds form due to the transfer of an electron from one atom to another. Covalent bonds involve the sharing of electrons between two atoms. Metallic bonds are formed by the attraction between metal ions and delocalized, or "free" electrons. Created by Sal Khan.

Metallic bonding

Explanation:

Metals have low ionization energies. Therefore, their valence electrons are easily delocalized (attracted to the neighbouring metal atoms). These delocalized electrons are then not associated with a specific metal atom. Since the electrons are "free", the metal atoms have become cations, and the electrons are free to move throughout the whole crystalline structure.

We say that a metal consists of an array of cations immersed in a sea of electrons.

The electrons act as a "glue" holding the cations together.

Metallic bonds are the attractive forces between the metal cations and the sea of electrons.

In an NaK alloy, for example, the Na and K atoms contribute their valence electrons to the "sea". The atoms aren't bonded to each other, but they are held in place by the metallic bonding.