Period (periodic table) across periods. Seven periods of elements occur naturally on Earth. For period 8, which includes elements which may be synthesized after 2016, see the extended periodic table. A group in chemistry means a family of objects with similarities like different families. There are 7 periods, going horizontally across the periodic table. The first period contains the least elements than any other, with only two, hydrogen and helium. They therefore do not follow the octet rule. Chemically, helium behaves like a noble gas, and thus is taken to be part of the group 18 elements. However, in terms of its nuclear
Periodic table of topological invariants dimensions can be labeled by the elements of the formula_46-th homotopy group of the symmetric space. These groups are displayed in this table, called the periodic table of topological insulators: There may also exist weak topological invariants (associated to the fact that the suspension of the Brillouin zone is in fact equivalent to a formula_66 sphere wedged with lower-dimensional spheres), which are not included in this table. Furthermore, the table assumes the limit of an infinite number of bands, i.e. involves formula_67 Hamiltonians for formula_68. The table also is periodic in the sense that the group of invariants in formula_46