Electron Configuration

Front

What is electron configuration?

Back

The distribution of electrons in an atom's orbitals, indicating the energy levels and sublevels occupied by electrons.

Front

What is the Aufbau principle?

Back

A rule stating that electrons occupy the lowest energy orbitals first before filling higher energy levels.

Front

What is the Pauli Exclusion Principle?

Back

A principle stating that no two electrons in an atom can have the same set of four quantum numbers.

Front

What is Hund's Rule?

Back

A rule stating that electrons will fill degenerate orbitals (orbitals of the same energy) singly before pairing up.

Front

What is the shorthand notation for electron configuration?

Back

A method of writing electron configurations using the nearest noble gas to represent core electrons.

Front

What is the electron configuration for a neutral Sulfur atom?

Back

1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁴.

Front

What is the shorthand electron configuration for Lead (Pb)?

Back

[Xe] 6s² 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6p².

Front

What is the electron configuration for Aluminum (Al)?

Back

1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p¹.

Front

What is the significance of the 3d subshell in electron configurations?

Back

The 3d subshell can hold a maximum of 10 electrons and is filled after the 4s subshell.

Front

How do you determine the number of valence electrons in an atom?

Back

By looking at the outermost electron shell and counting the electrons in that shell.