What is one of the three basic atomic arrangements that metals can take?

The face-centered cubic (FCC) structure is one of the three basic atomic arrangements found in metals, recognized for its unique characteristics. In the FCC arrangement, atoms are located at each of the corners of the cube and at the center of each face, resulting in a total of four atoms per unit cell. This packing arrangement facilitates efficient space utilization and allows for high coordination numbers, which contributes significantly to the ductility and strength of metals that adopt this structure.

The FCC structure is prevalent in many metals such as aluminum, copper, and gold. Its close-packed geometry allows for more efficient atomic packing, leading to beneficial mechanical properties. This characteristic makes FCC metals notably malleable and ductile, capable of undergoing significant deformation before fracturing, which is crucial during various manufacturing processes.

Other options, while they may sound plausible, do not represent the standard arrangements commonly associated with metallic structures. For instance, square-centered cubic and cubic-polyhedral are not widely recognized arrangements in the context of metallic crystallography, and hexagonally structured may refer to hexagonal close-packed (HCP), which is a valid structure but is not one of the basic atomic arrangements alongside FCC and body-centered cubic (BCC). Hence, the face-centered cubic structure is the correct identification for