Abstract: This chapter covers the structural chemistry of Groups 1 and 2 elements, except hydrogen. For Group 1 metals, special attention is paid to the oxides, lithium nitride, inorganic alkali metal complexes, methyllithium compounds, -complexes of lithium, sodium and potassium, alkalides and electrides, etc. For the Group 2 metals, the coverage includes their complexes, nitrides, low-valent oxides and nitrides, polymeric chains, Grignard reagents, metallocenes, etc. The chapter concludes with a section on the alkali and alkaline-earth metal complexes with inverse crown structures.

Keywords: alkali metal complexes, alkalides, alkali-earth metallocenes, electrides, Grignard reagents, inverse crown compounds, lithium complexes, low-valent oxides and nitrides, complexes of sodium, complexes of potassium,