Enthalpy of atomization, also known as the enthalpy of atomization of a substance, is the amount of energy required to break a substance into its individual gaseous atoms. It is a measure of the strength of the bonds holding the atoms together in a molecule or compound. Essentially, it represents the energy needed to convert one mole of a substance into its constituent atoms in the gas phase.
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An enthalpy of atomization is the enthalpy change for making one mole of separated gaseous chemical atoms from a specified starting chemical substance. For sodium, the relevant step is sublimation to monatomic gas; for diatomic chlorine, it is half the compatible molar bond-dissociation energy expressed as an enthalpy.